Child of the Night
by GhedahrianVampress
Summary: The world of Aia has never before seen a vampire/human halfling ... It wasn't even believed to be possible ... Until now ...
1. Chapter 1

Te'ijal couldn't believe it ... She didn't even know how to feel ... All she could do was sit there on the bed, staring into the two blue orbs of her husband who stood before her, looking just as shocked as she felt. It honestly shouldn't have come as such a shock to either of them, but for some reason it did. With every thing that had happened lately with Mel getting kidnapped, and then sent into the Demon Realm ... Well, let's just say that they had had other things on their mind's.

You see, Te'ijal had been feeling sick for the last little while. She was almost constantly nauseous, with very little energy. She had tried to ignore it, pretending that it wasn't as bad as it was, but eventually Galahad caught on that something was wrong with her. One day, while they were travelling through the Snowy Dire Woods, Te'ijal had just started feeling so weak and dizzy that she ended up fainting.

In a panic, Galahad had scooped her into his arms and rushed her back to Thornkeep, leaving Edward and Stella to catch up with them later. There weren't many people left in the ghost town; only the inn keeper and his wife, who just so happened to be a herbalist. Galahad thanked the Goddess for their stroke of luck, concerned at the time that his wife might perish before he could find help.

Galahad had been forced out of the room when the examination began, but was allowed to come back in after it was finished. The herbalist then began to ask the two of them some strange, and rather personal questions, such as when the last time they slept together had been. Neither Te'ijal nor Galahad had been able to figure out why she asked such a question ... That is until she finally told them what was wrong with Te'ijal. She was pregnant.

"Are you absolutely certain?" Galahad asked.

The herbalist nodded her head without a second thought. "She has all the usual symptoms. From what I can determine, she is around four or five weeks along," she explained, starting towards the door. "I shall leave the two of you alone for a few moments, as I'm sure you have much to discuss."

No sooner had the door closed behind the herbalist, the Galahad began to slowly draw closer to Te'ijal until he was standing at her side. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, he ran a hand through his long blonde hair. "I'm surprised I didn't figure it out on my own," he stated. "I was always able to tell whenever Rhen was with child. What was preventing me from sensing that you were?"

Te'ijal took a deep, shaky breath. She had an idea, but she wasn't sure how he would react to it. "Galahad ... The herbalist said that I was five weeks along ... It shouldn't even be possible for me to be pregnant if that is the case."

He furrowed his brows in confusion. "What are you talking about, w-"

Then it suddenly hit him. He finally understood why she thought it was impossible. Galahad had been bitten by the Vampress, Beatrice, approximately six weeks ago. If what the elderly herbalist had said was true, then that meant ... No! He shook his head, desperately trying to deny that possibility. However, the more he fought against the idea, the more he realized that it might just be true.

"Surely, there must be some other justifiable explanation," he insisted. "Everyone knows that vampires can't have children."

"I am well aware of that, Galahad," she stated, her tone sounding the slightest bit irritated. "Yet, even I can't deny that it appears to be the case."

Galahad was completely silent for a while, as he tried to calm down and straighten out his thoughts. He should have been happy. After all, he had always wanted to have children one day. He had even discussed it with Te'ijal while they were living in Sedona. As strange as it sounded, the truth was that he had somehow grown to love the woman who had originally stolen his soul and cursed him to be a vile creature of the night. He had wanted Te'ijal to bear his children.

However, there was one thought stuck in his mind that prevented him from being happy; Was the child a vampire? He honestly didn't understand how it was physically possible for a human and a vampire to create a life, but he chose not to dwell on it for the moment. All he wanted to know was whether it was a human or a vampire. The thought of him having spread the curse of vampirism to his unborn child filled him with guilt. He didn't want anyone, let alone his own child, to suffer as he had.

"Perhaps you should kill me and save us all the trouble," Te'ijal remarked.

Galahad's head shot straight up. "How can you say that, wife?! Is the idea of bearing my child so horrifying to you?"

Te''ijal averted her gaze from him, instead looking at her own two hands, which were folded over her lap. "No. It is not you I am concerned about. You would make a wonderful father. However, can you honestly imagine me as a mother? I don't even remember my own mother. I don't remember what she looked like, or even whether she loved me."

His eyes softened as he reached out and took her hands in his. "Te'ijal, can you not see? You've spent the last several years protecting three children. Have you not noticed this? As soon as any of them are in trouble, they come running to you, no matter how far across Aia they are. You're already like a mother to them."

Te'ijal managed to let out a small laugh. "I must admit that they do seem to rely on me for some reason, believing that I have all the answers they seek. Mel in particular has always been strange in that regard."

Galahad smiled at her. He honestly didn't know how he had never realized just how wonderful she truly was. He must have been blinded by his hatred towards vampires, as well as his hatred towards her for turning him into one. She was incredibly brave, never backing down from a challenge. Although she would never admit it herself, Galahad could see now that she did have a heart, and a good one at that, even if she was a bit strange at times.

"Do you truly want this child?" Te'ijal asked him, lifting her gaze to look at him again. "Will you accept it even if it is a vampire?"

He nodded his head. "I will love it just as I have learned to love you, regardless of what you are."

And at that moment, tears began to well up in her eyes, trickling down her high cheeks. "Curse my pathetic human eyes!" she exclaimed, reaching up to wipe the tears away.

Galahad chuckled. "I think we're going to be just fine," he said in a whisper as he bent down and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.


	2. Chapter 2

A wave of dizziness washed over Te'ijal as she leaned over to pull on her boots, forcing her to sit back down on the bed until the room stopped spinning. Once it had faded away, she finished putting on her boots and got up, grabbing her bow and quiver of arrows. She suspected that the dizzy spells might hinder her a bit during her travels, but at least she wouldn't have to worry about the morning sickness as much, seeing as the herbalist had given her an elixir to help keep it at bay. Te'ijal thought it to be a strange name for such a sickness, considering the fact it took place all day, not just in the morning. She rolled her eyes. Humans and their strange ways. She feared that she would never understand them, even though she technically was one.

The fact that she was indeed human still hadn't quite sunk in, despite the fact that almost two full years had passed since the transition occurred. There were still moments in which she forgot that she wasn't immortal. She missed the feeling of invincibility that came with being a vampire. She missed so many things about it that her poor human mind wasn't able to remember them all. That was another thing she missed. Some of her earlier memories of being a vampire were starting to fade away, and that frightened her, though she would never admit it.

She started to pull her red cloak over, when all of a sudden the door opened, and in came Galahad with a tray of food. Seeing Te'ijal decked out in all her usual battle gear, he stopped dead in his tracks. After a moment, he let out a sigh and set the tray down on the bedside table.

"Do you honestly expect me to eat that?" Te'ijal asked him, glancing at the food as if it was the most disgusting thing she had ever seen. She had never understood how humans could eat so much of it.

"I know food doesn't appeal to you at the best of times, but you must try to eat at least a little. You haven't been able to keep anything in your stomach for the last week."

Te'ijal rolled her eyes at him, but reluctantly sat down on the bed, grabbing a small loaf of bread and taking a bite. It was hard and dry, and not at all appetizing. Since becoming human, she had discovered many foods that she hated, but she had also discovered a few foods that she didn't mind. In general, she liked things that were juicy. She enjoyed sinking her teeth into things like tomatoes and plums, sucking all the juice out and discarding the wrinkled up peel. It made her feel like a vampire again, and so she continued to do it, even though Galahad thought it was rather strange. Unfortunately for her, it seemed that there was no such fruit to be found in the village of ghosts.

Slowly she managed to force down the loaf of bread and gulp down the mug of water, but she didn't dare touch the fried egg. Galahad had tried feeding her eggs many times back in Sedona, but she had never been able to stomach them. They might have been one of his favorite breakfast food's, but they certainly were not hers.

"Are you pleased now?" Te'ijal asked with a scowl.

Galahad nodded his head, "Yes, I am pleased by your effort."

She placed a hand on her belly, rubbing it gently as she began to feel a bit queasy from the food. For the last week or so, she had often wondered what was happening to her body. Between the unexplainable fatigue, dizziness, and nausea, she honestly had not known what was wrong. For a while, she had thought that her body was dying on her. She was relieved to at least know that wasn't the case.

Never in all the centuries she had lived had she ever thought that she would become pregnant, mostly because it had never been possible while she was a vampire. She had only started to think about it when Galahad told her of his wish to become a father. At the time, she wasn't sure if she was willing to grant that wish. It wasn't that she was opposed to the idea of giving Galahad a child, but rather that she knew that by having a child, it meant that she would be forced to remain human for the rest of her short life.

Now that it was actually becoming reality, she still wasn't entirely sure how she felt about it. She didn't hate the child that was forming inside her. How could she? It was a part of her. Even though it was causing her all sorts of problems, it was still her flesh and blood. Not only that, but it was Galahad's flesh and blood as well. As she looked over at him, she saw that he was watching her with a smile.

She hadn't seen that smile for the first three hundred years of their marriage. There had been many delicious looking expressions of his that she had seen, which were thoroughly entertaining, but never a smile. She hadn't even known what his smile looked like. Then, on that fateful day when she almost burned to death at the top of Darkthrop Keep, that all changed. As Galahad untied her and rubbed sunscreen into her skin, he smiled at her for the first time, and she was hypnotized by it.

Although she still did enjoy teasing and taunting Galahad from time to time, she realized that she enjoyed making him smile even more. So, she decided that she would try to be happy about this child for his sake, regardless of whether it meant she had to remain human or not. He seemed to think she was capable of being a mother, and she really didn't feel like arguing with him.

"Well, if you're finished eating, we should probably go rejoin the others. Edward is particularly anxious to get going," Galahad said as he got to his feet, taking Te'ijal's hand and pulling her up with him.

"Did you tell them?" Te'ijal inquired.

"They were too busy eating to ask any questions when last I saw them," he explained, shaking his head. "However, I do think that we should tell them. After all, I will need them to watch over you while I'm gone."

Te'ijal groaned. She had almost forgotten about that. "I see that you are still just as determined as ever to go through with your little plan to save Mel," she remarked, pulling her hand out from Galahad's.

"Wife, I know you're worried about me, but I will be fine," Galahad reassured her, reaching out to stroke her cheek. "Besides, someone must save her, and since fate has decided to turn me back into a vampire, it seems only fitting that I should be the one to go."

Te'ijal didn't like the sound of this plan one bit. She hadn't liked it from the very start, but Galahad was stubborn and refused to reconsider. Once he set his mind to something, there was no way to stop him from pursuing it. It was a trait that she both admired and despised. However, she chose to let him have his way and not fight him on it. Perhaps it was the slight lack of energy, but for once, she didn't feel like trying to convince him otherwise. At least, not at that moment.

"While I do not approve of this idea, I will refrain from arguing with you for the time being," Te'ijal stated firmly. "Just be careful and promise that you will come back to me."

"Thank you for being so agreeable today," he said, smiling at her yet again. "I swear by all that is holy, that I shall do all that I possibly can to return safely to your side."

Te'ijal nodded her head, accepting his promise. "Well, I suppose we should go and tell our friends the news ... They're bound to find out one way or another."

With that, Te'ijal took a deep breath and followed her husband out of the room. She couldn't help but wonder how they would react.


	3. Chapter 3

When Te'ial and Galahad got downstairs, they found Edward and Stella seated at one of the tables in the lobby, finishing up their food. From the looks of it, they were basically finished. So, when they saw Te'ijal and Galahad, they quickly got up and went to meet them. Just as Galahad had said, Edward did appear to be rather anxious to get going, and apparently hadn't chewed his food well enough because he soon began to hiccup. Stella, on the other hand, was clearly worried about Te'ijal.

"Are we - HIC - ready to get - HIC - going again?" Edward asked.

Te'ijal nodded her head, but did not reply, far too amused by the prince's hiccups. Stella quickly dashed back over to the table and retrieved one of the mugs, giving it to Edward to relieve his hiccups. He took a sip of, what appeared to be coffee, and seemed to be fine after that, which was disappointing to Te'ijal. She would have liked to watch him hiccup for a while longer.

"So, what was wrong with you Te'ijal?" Edward asked a bit too bluntly.

"Edward, that's rude!" Stella chastised him. "She doesn't have to tell us if she doesn't want to!"

Poor Edward looked like a puppy that had just been kicked by its owner. Te'ijal probably would have laughed, had the prince not reminded her of the reason she had been rushed to the Inn in the first place. Both Te'ijal and Galahad were silent as they glanced at each other, as if silently finalizing their decision as to whether they should share the news.

"We did discover the cause of my illness ..." Te'ijal began hesitantly. "And it is shocking to say the least."

Edward and Stella looked at them expectantly, clearly curious as to what was going on. Te'ijal didn't exactly want to be the one to say it, but she wasn't sure if she wanted Galahad to tell them either. After contemplating it for a little while, she finally motioned for her husband to do the honours.

"Te'ijal is pregnant," Galahad announced.

Oddly enough, Stella's eyes lit up as if someone had just presented her with a cute little kitten. "Oh my goodness! That is so wonderful! I'm so happy for the two of you!" she squealed with delight.

Edward, on the other hand, appeared to be frozen in shock, and ended up dropping his mug of coffee to the floor, causing Stella to jump as the hot coffee splashed her legs as well as her dress. However, the prince didn't even seem to hear Stella let out a startled yelp. He just stood there, his eyes looking like they were about to pop right out of their sockets, and his jaw hanging open.

"H-How?" he asked, beginning to come out of his frozen state.

Te'ijal raised a brow at him. "Do you really wish to know how Galahad got me pregnant?" she asked him teasingly.

That definitely woke Edward up. "No! No!" he declared, blushing madly. "I just wanted to know how it is possible!"

Stella looked at him. "What do you mean?"

Edward took a moment to regain his calm himself down before explaining. "Well, Galahad is technically a vampire, and Te'ijal is human. It shouldn't be possible. Te'ijal, you told us yourself that vampires are unable to have children."

"Yes, I did say that, and it has been proven that vampires are unable to have children ... However, you have to take into account that most vampires believe themselves to be superior to humans. The theory of a vampire and a human having children has actually never been tested ... until now, it would seem ..."

Silence washed over the group as each tried to process the things that had just been said. No one seemed to know what to say next. Well, no one except Edward.

"So ... What happens now? Are the two of you returning to Sedona? Is Te'ijal staying here?"

"The plans have not changed. However, I need the two of you to be aware of the risks that have been added by this sudden turn of events. As much as I want to protect my family myself, I fear that I will be unable to while in the demon realm, and so the responsibility will fall to you two."

Edward and Stella looked at each for a moment before nodding in unison. "Don't worry, Galahad, we'll keep them safe until you return," Stella said.

Te'ijal honestly didn't think that she would need to be protected by either of them. She was more than capable of defending herself, and Galahad was well aware of this. However, she couldn't exactly deny that she had been put in danger once or twice before, despite her attempts. If it weren't for Galahad, she would have been nothing but a pile of ash. As much as she would have liked to think otherwise, she realized that even she wasn't totally immune to danger, especially now that she was human.

She recognized that her husband was carrying a great burden on his shoulders. He was trying to protect a bunch of people at the same exact time. A part of Te'ijal couldn't help but think him foolish. Sometimes she wished that he would choose to be selfish for once and choose to stay by her side, but she knew that it was not in his character to be do so. He was a Paladin. He was selfless and caring, always putting the safety of others before his own. It frustrated her at times, but deep down she admired that about him.

"Thank you, my friends," Galahad said, the relief on his face clear to see. "I am in your debt."

"Well then, let's get going!" Edward declared all of a sudden, starting towards the door. "The sooner we leave, the sooner we can save Mel and we can all be reunited."


	4. Chapter 4

Te'ijal had never been inside the Underfall Cathedral, so she was just as surprised as anyone else. However, unlike the others, she found that it reminded her of home. It reminded her of the Cathedral in Ghed'ahre, especially back when there had been a demon residing in the catacombs underneath. Much like back then, she could sense the evil coming from the building. She could only assume that it was coming from the opened demon portal at the very end of the grand hall.

"Well, we made it," Edward stated, looking over his shoulder to make sure that no one was around to notice them.

"This place is creepy ..." Stella shivered.

Carefully the four of them crept up the staircase, but were forced to draw back as they saw the strange ghost like creatures guarding the portal. So far, the creatures hadn't noticed them, and that suited them just fine for the time being, seeing as they were not quite ready to let Galahad go. As much as they wanted to save Mel, they were starting to fully realize just how dangerous this mission was.

There was a chance, even if a small one, that both Galahad and Mel would be stuck in the Demon Realm forever. Te'ijal was mindful of that fact, and it terrified her, even though she refused to show it. A part of her wanted nothing more than to go in her husband's place, or at least go with him, but she knew that they were both impossible right now. She had no idea whether her turning back into a vampire would affect the baby forming inside her, and she knew she couldn't afford to take such risks.

So, she held her tongue and repeated the promise Galahad had made in her mind. She didn't trust nearly everyone, but she did trust her husband. He never broke his promises. He would find a way to return to her. She just hoped that it did not take too long. Heaven knows she was not a patient woman, especially not when her short human life was passing her by.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Galahad?" Stella asked hesitantly.

Galahad nodded his head in determination. "I am sure. However, I would appreciate a couple of moments alone with my wife before I go."

Edward and Stella nodded their heads and retreated into a corner, turning their backs in order to give Galahad and his wife as much privacy as they possibly could in that particular situation.

"Wife, I know that look in your eyes," Galahad said in a slightly hushed tone, turning to Te'ijal. "I've seen it many times over the years. I know that you want to go with me, but you can't."

Te'ijal sighed. "I know that, but that doesn't mean I have to like it."

He looked at her with a hint of regret in his dark blue eyes, and in a rare moment, he pulled her into him, wrapping his arms tightly around her and nuzzling his face into her short red hair. Up until that moment, he had always been confident about his decision to go after Mel, but now that he was in Underfall, feet away from the demon portal, he found himself tempted to stay. He didn't want to leave his wife and child in the care of someone else. He wanted to protect him themselves.

"I don't like the idea entirely myself, but I have to do it," he told her, pulling away from her.

In that moment of peace and quiet, he was able to hear not only one heartbeat coming from within her, but two. Although, the second was very small, and barely audible to even him, he could faintly hear it, and it made him smile. It had only been a week since they discovered that Te'ijal was pregnant, and despite not being able to sense it at first, he definitely was able to now.

Reaching down, he placed a hand on her still flat stomach, silently marveling at the tiny life that him and Te'ijal had created. "Be careful, my love, and try not to strangle anyone while I'm gone."

Te'ijal rolled her eyes. "You ask too much of me."

Galahad chuckled. He wasn't sure who to feel more sorry for; Te'ijal or Stella. You see, Stella had recently become particularly protective of Te'ijal, and it was getting on Te'ijal's nerves. Turns out she didn't like being fussed over. She claimed that she was capable of taking care of herself, and Galahad believed her. However, it did reassure him to know that Stella was taking excellent care of her.

"At least try," and with that, he gave her a quick but meaningful kiss on the lips, before turning back to face the other two. "I suppose it's time for me to go."

Edward and Stella turned back around. "Good luck, Galahad," Edward said. "I hope to see both you and Mel soon."

"I must urge you not to return with anything but Mel," Stella warned him. "I fear that everything in the demon realm is tainted."

Galahad nodded his head in understanding, then without further ado, he climbed the stairs, charging past the ghost creatures with vampiric speed. No sooner had he reached the portal, then he began to disappear.

Watching her husband vanish before her eyes, Te'ijal couldn't help but clutch at her chest, feeling as though someone had just staked her. However, she wasn't able to dwell on her pain for long as she heard a familiar voice echo throughout the cathedral. It was a voice that she knew all too well. It was Gyendal ...

"What's going on here?" he asked.

"A man dressed in armor rushed into the portal," came the reply.

"It must have been one of the girl's friends, which means that the rest of them are likely to be nearby!" Gyendal exclaimed. "Find them and bring them to me!"

Hearing that, the three remaining heroes hurried out of the Cathedral, running as fast as their legs could take. Stella gasped as she glanced back and saw that a group of Darklings were chasing after them, and were quickly catching up. Deep down they all knew that they were unlikely to escape them, but they still tried regardless, not knowing what Gyendal would do to them if they were caught.


	5. Chapter 5

Drip ... Drip ... Drip ... Te'ijal awoke to the sound of water dripping through the crevices of the dungeon. Sitting up, her body felt completely stiff and sore. There was a time when she had insisted on sleeping on the floor back at her and Galahad's house in Sedona, the bed feeling far too soft and lumpy for her liking. She remembered that Galahad would always lift her off the floor while she was asleep and place her in bed next to him. Now, as she was forced to sleep on the cold hard stone floor, she couldn't help but miss those days. She couldn't help but miss him.

It had only been a couple of days since Galahad vanished into the demon realm, but they had been a couple of miserable days, which made them feel so much longer. The cold, damp climate of the dungeon certainly wasn't helping her with her symptoms. If anything, it was making them worse. The herbalist's elixir didn't seem to be helping all that much. Although, she did have to admit that she wasn't actually vomiting anymore, she still felt queasy and dizzy at times.

Feeling a shiver run through her, she pulled the cloaks tightly around her, clinging to any warmth she could find. One thing she had found lately, was that she was always cold. She could be sitting right in front of a camp fire, wrapped in two thick cloaks, and she still felt like ice. That was exactly why she was currently wearing both Edward and Stella's cloaks. They had both given her their cloaks, claiming that she would need them more than they would. Even though it did little to warm her up, she did appreciate the thought behind the gesture. They might be a bit annoying at times, but deep down they were a couple of kind-hearted little lambs.

"How are you feeling, Te'ijal?" Stella asked from the corner of the cell, where she was found cuddling into Edward's arms. "Did you sleep well? Were you able to warm up?"

Te'ijal sighed. "I managed to get a decent amount of sleep, however my back and shoulders are hurting me. As for the third question, I still feel like a block of ice."

Edward groaned. "I'm starting to think that nothing is going to warm you up."

To be honest, Te'ijal had already begun to suspect that herself. Not only that, but she suspected that it might have something to do with the child forming within her. Vampires were normally ice-cold to the touch, and there was a chance that the child was at least part vampire. She liked to think that the child was sharing some of its vampirism with her, and that was comforting to her. It was her only comfort while stuck in that dungeon.

Just then, she heard the sound of someone approaching. Before long she saw a tall dark haired figure appear in front of the cell door, his blood-red cloak swishing around him. It was Gyendal. With a snap of his fingers, the cell door opened, and a couple of Darklings flew in, holding a plate of food, none of which looked appetizing.

Edward and Stella got up to go get some, but Te'ijal stayed exactly where she was. A part of her was hungry, but at the same time the thought of eating seemed disgusting. She knew she should eat, but she just couldn't bring herself to try.

"Do you intend to starve yourself like that foolish husband of yours did for so many years, sister?" Gyendal asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

She glared at him out of the corner of her eye, but otherwise made no reply. The remark was not meant as an insult against her. She knew her brother well enough to know that. It was meant as an insult against Galahad, whom he had never liked. She assumed that it had something to do with the fact that Galahad had always hated being a vampire, and refused to feed. Then, there was the fact that she had chosen to protect humans, which he did not like at all. That was why he considered her a traitor.

"You really should try to eat something, Te'ijal," Stella said. "You need all the nourishment that you can get."

"Worry about yourselves. I'll be just fine," Te'ijal replied.

Stella shook her head. "No, you won't!" she insisted. "Can't you see how dangerous this situation is to you? You shouldn't be locked in a dungeon!"

"It isn't the first time I've been locked in a dungeon, Stella," she reminded her, trying to remain as calm as she could. Needless to say, the moth was starting to get on her nerves again.

"Maybe not, but it is the first time you've been locked in a dungeon while pregnant!" she exclaimed.

"BE QUIET!"

The glare Te'ijal gave Stella was frightening enough to cause her to shrink back, ducking behind Edward for protection. Both her and the prince were visibly shaken by her outburst of frustration. Seeing the look of fear on their faces, Te'ijal began to calm down. She hadn't meant to snap at Stella the way she did. After all, she hadn't done anything wrong. Galahad had asked her and Edward to watch over her, and that was exactly what they were trying to do. The moth did have good intentions, despite everything.

"You're what!?" Gyendal yelled out, reminding everyone that he was still present, and had heard everything they said.

Her eyes shot straight towards her brother, who was clearly shocked. In fact, Te'ijal was surprised by how shocked he seemed. She had never seen him in such a state before. It appeared as if he had suddenly lost the ability to move, his body stiff and motionless. His purple eyes, which were only a couple shades darker than her own, were as wide as possible. His reaction actually reminded her of Edward's, except for the fact that his mouth wasn't gaping open like an idiot. She honestly couldn't blame either of them for being shocked, for she had been pretty shocked herself at first.

She honestly didn't know what to say to him. They might have been close at one point, but obviously not anymore. While she was contemplating what to say, Gyendal broke from his statue-like state, regaining the ability to move. "Move the other two into a different cell for the time being," Gyendal commanded the Darklings. "I wish to speak with my sister alone."

The Darklings grabbed Edward and Stella, by the arm, pulling them apart as they pulled them out of the room. They squirmed a bit, but otherwise didn't resist too much. Luckily, they both seemed to realize that the brother and sister did need to talk privately. No sooner were they gone from sight, Gyendal began to slowly move towards her, and as he did so, Te'ijal got to her feet, keeping her guard up just to be careful.

He stopped no more than a foot away from her, looking her straight in the eye. As far as Te'ijal could tell, there wasn't any anger to be found in him. He was shocked, but that appeared to be it. "Is it true? Is what the moth said true? Are you really ..." He asked, trailing off as he appeared to be unable to say the word.

"Pregnant? Yes, I am."

"Is it his?"

She rolled her eyes. "Of course it is his," she said. "You of all people should know that Galahad is the only man to ever capture my heart."

"Yes, unfortunately I do know that," he said with a sigh. "However, you should know that I'm always hoping you'll change your mind."

"Take my advice and give up. It's not going to happen, brother, especially not now."

There was a period of silence of after that. Gyendal pinched the bridge of his nose, and appeared to be contemplating something. Te'ijal had no idea what was going on in that thick skull of his, and part of her didn't want to know. Eventually, he started mumbling something incoherently. She didn't catch all of it, but she thought she heard him say something like "...fool... gets my sister pregnant and then abandons her to go save the day."

Then, all of a sudden, he reached out and pulled the two extra cloaks off of her, handing them to the Darklings who had just returned from moving the prisoners. "Give these back to the other two, and tell them not to worry about my sister," Gyendal ordered.

The Darklings looked at each other in confusion, but did as they were told and left again. Gyendal then grabbed her by the arm, and began pulling her out of the cell and down the long dark hall, much to Te'ijal's surprise.

"Gyendal, what are you doing?" Te'ijal asked, trying to wriggle her arm free.

"You may be frustratingly stubborn, and a traitor to vampires, but you are still my sister, and I refuse to let you waste away. So, I shall lock you in my chambers, where I can keep an eye on you, and make sure you don't starve."

Te'ijal stopped fighting after that, allowing herself to go with him. She couldn't help but smile to herself. She might not have been able to remember what Gyendal had been like as a human the first time, or herself for that matter, but she got the feeling that he was gradually turning back into the man he used to be. He was not the cruel and merciless Lord of Twilight. He was not the man who had tried to kill her in Darkthrop Keep. Even if he was trying hard to conceal the fact, she could see that he did have a heart, something that he had been clearly lacking for many centuries.


	6. Chapter 6

A flash of light appeared before Galahad's eyes, momentarily blinding him as he felt the portal suck him in. In the blink of an eye, he went from standing in the middle of a lush green meadow in Aveyond, to standing in the middle of the Dark Cathedral. It took him a moment to process the sudden change, looking around to make sure that Mel had made it as well. To his relief, he found that she stood at his side, just as she had when they stepped into the portal.

A lot had happened in the Demon Realm. They had defeated a demon with help from two mysterious young girls. Galahad had been shocked to say the least when he found that Aveyond was accessible through such an evil realm. However, he knew that the oracle worked in mysterious ways, so he did not question it. He honestly hadn't taken the time to question much. He focused his full attention on the task he had come to complete, and that was to find Mel, and as soon as he had found her, he focused on getting out, eager to return.

Now that they were finally back, he took the time to thoroughly examine everything. As far as he could tell, everything looked just like it had when he left. The creepy ghost creatures were still surrounding the portal. To be honest, he was surprised that they hadn't attacked, or tried to push them back into the portal. They remained in place, staring at Galahad and Mel with their glowing red eyes. Aside from that, nothing was different.

"Where is everyone?" Mel asked. "I thought you said that the Te'ijal, Edward, and Stella were with you."

Hearing that, Galahad remembered that he had in fact left the three of them by the entrance. A strange feeling began to stir inside him at that. What had happened to them? Had they left the Cathedral shortly after? Had they been caught by the ghost creatures? Were they safe? More importantly, was Te'ijal safe? Whatever had happened, Galahad knew that he had to find them.

Just then, a group of Darklings appeared before them, bowing down at Mel's feet. Yemite, being a loyal Darkling Servant, didn't seem to feel the need to follow their example, standing proudly a step behind her so-called mistress. "Welcome back, great mistress of the dark!" they exclaimed all at once.

"Where are my friends, Darklings?" Mel asked.

One of the Darklings poked stepped forward to reply. "Gyendal had us lock them in the dungeons."

Hearing this, a strangely dark feeling began to well up within Galahad. He couldn't quite understand what exactly it was, but it made him furious. So much so that he found himself pulling out his sword and pointing is straight at the tiny horned creature that had just spoke. He was sorely tempted to slaughter the lot of them.

"You locked my wife up in the dungeon!?" Galahad roared. "I should strike you down on the spot!"

Mel reached out and placed a hand of the paladin's shoulder, shaking her head at him. Oddly enough, Galahad felt compelled to do as she asked, and quickly slipped the blade back into it's sheath. He had to admit that he did feel rather peculiar, but for the life of him, he couldn't understand why. He shook his head, passing it off as nothing. It was just the concern he felt for his wife's well-being that caused it.

"Bring them to us!" Mel commanded them.

The Darklings flew off down one of the connecting hallways without hesitation. It took them a little while, but eventually they did return. However, Galahad was surprised to find that only Edward and Stella were with them. Te'ijal was nowhere to be seen. The mere absence of her caused the strange feeling to well up inside of him again, however, this time, he tried to suppress, telling himself to wait and see what his two friends had to say before jumping to conclusions.

"Mel, I'm so happy your back!" Stella immediately came running towards Mel, enveloping her in an embrace, which Mel tried to squirm her way out of. Needless to say, she had never been overly fond of hugs.

"I missed you too, Stella, but could you please let go of me?" Mel asked. "You're hugging me too tightly."

"Oops, sorry," Stella said, pulling away slightly from her friend.

"I'm so glad, Galahad managed to find you!" Edward exclaimed, coming forward to give Mel a quick hug of his own. "Are you all right?"

Mel nodded her head, "I'm a little shaken, but otherwise I'm okay."

Galahad allowed the three of them to catch up for a moment, receiving a quick hug himself from Stella, who had always loved giving hugs to everyone. She was the type of person who believed that everyone needed a hug, and Galahad had to agree that a fair amount of people probably could use a hug now and then, but not nearly everyone. She had even tried giving Lydia a hug once ... Let's just say that Lydia didn't take it well.

"Where is Te'ijal?" Galahad asked at last.

Edward and Stella exchanged a look between themselves briefly before reluctantly turning to face Galahad. "To be honest, we don't entirely know," Edward said with a gulp. "We were all locked in the same cell for the first couple of days, but then Gyendal came and took her with him. We haven't seen her since."

That definitely set him off into a boiling rage, incapable of suppressing the strange feeling any longer. Before anyone knew what was going on, Galahad had grabbed Edward by the neck, lifting him five feet into the air. "How could you let this happen?! You were supposed to keep her safe!"

Seeing as Edward was unable to speak, as he was too busy trying to pry Galahad's fingers from his throat, Stella stepped in to reply for him. "It's not Edward's fault!" she exclaimed. "I accidentally told Gyendal about her, er ... condition ... and he ordered the Darklings to drag us away!"

"You told him?!" Galahad echoed, dropping Edward to the ground as he turned towards Stella. "Do you have any idea what he's capable of? Who knows what unspeakable horrors he has done to her!"

Stella let out a startled yelp as Galahad began to advance towards her. She was frightened out of her mind, unable to believe how scary the typically kind and compassionate knight was acting. He had nearly strangled Edward for crying out loud! That was not at all something that the Galahad she knew would do, even if he was angry.

Her back had just hit the wall when Galahad suddenly stopped in his tracks, and began clutching his head as if he was in pain, for he was in pain. He felt as though there was a full fledged battle going on in his head. One side was telling him to destroy the girl for her error, but the other side was telling him to resist the first and forgive her.

"Don't worry, I haven't harmed her," Gyendal said, strolling into the room all of a sudden. "In fact, I've taken better care of her than those two ever could have."

"You exaggerate, Gyendal," Te'ijal remarked, as she came up beside him.

Seeing her, Galahad rushed towards her, pulling her into his arms. He was so relieved to see that she was still alive, and didn't seem to have changed much. That told him that he must not have been gone for very long, and he was relieved about that as well. He wasn't entirely sure how time worked in the demon realm, but it felt like he had been in there for at least a week.

"Are you all right? Has he harmed you?" Galahad asked, pulling away to examine every inch of her.

Te'ijal rolled her eyes. "Believe it or not, Gyendal actually managed to take decent care of me. He literally forced me to eat, and I am a bit annoyed at him for that, but I suppose it was in my best interest ... even if chewing is disgusting."

Galahad glanced over at Gyendal, but said nothing, unable to trust him. However, Gyendal didn't seem too fond to see him either, judging from the scowl he gave him.

"Mel, what is that staff your holding?" Stella asked, taking notice of the staff in her friends hand as she helped Edward up. "I can sense the powerful magic coming from it. It's so... dangerous ..."

Te'ijal's head snapped straight towards Mel. Sure enough, there was a staff in her hands. She remembered that Stella had warned Galahad about not returning with anything aside from Mel, but she hadn't quite understood why.

"Yes, it is. That's exactly why I brought it back with me," Mel replied, holding the staff up for everyone to see. "Just think of all the good things we can do with it. So much is wrong with this world, and now I can make it right. With it, I can bring Lydia to her knees and restore you to your rightful place on the throne, Edward."

Then, before anyone could object, Mel ordered the Darklings to do something that shocked everyone. At her command, the Darklings disappeared and reappeared a few moments later with every ruler in the known land in chains, including none other than Lydia. Te'ijal, Edward, and Stella knew in that moment that something had gone wrong. They could all see that Mel was not acting like her usual self. She might hate nobility, but she would never go so far as to imprison them.

"Take them all to the dungeon, and while you're at it, take Gyendal as well!" Mel ordered.

"Mel! Have you lost your mind!?" Te'ijal exclaimed. "I just told you that he hasn't harmed me!"

"Perhaps, but he has harmed plenty of other people, myself included. He must pay for his crimes!"

The Darklings started towards Gyendal, but he was too quick and portaled himself out of the Cathedral before they could reach him. While Edward and Stella tried to reason with Mel, Te'ijal started to grow wary of Galahad. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but there was definitely something different about him.

"Wife, what's wrong?" Galahad asked.

"I don't know. You seem ... different ... darker," she said.

He opened his mouth, and was about to reply, when Mel suddenly called him to her. Without even a glance back at Te'ijal, he went to her side, bowing before her. No sooner had he done so, then Edward and Stella came jogging up to her, their faces filled with concern as they motioned for her to follow them.

The three of them managed to get halfway down the stairs before Mel and Galahad noticed what they were doing. "What are you three doing? You can't leave!" Mel declared. "Darklings, stop them from leaving!"

In the blink of an eye, a group of Darklings appeared before them, blocking their way. Pulling out his sword, Edward was ready to fight his way through, when suddenly a ball of light began to form around them. They saw Galahad begin to charge towards them, but everything soon disappeared as they were completely engulfed in the light.


	7. Chapter 7

The moment the ball of light disappeared, Te'ijal felt her stomach turn queasy. Clamping a hand over her mouth, she tried to keep the keep it at bay until the queasy feeling went away, which it fortunately did with a bit of time. "Curses!" she exclaimed. "I can't even handle teleportation anymore!"

"My sincerest apologies, children," said a frail old voice.

It was only then that she realized where she was. The Dark Cathedral had been replaced by a blindingly bright temple, a temple that she recognized all too well. It was Aveyond, and standing in the middle of temple was the Oracle, looking exactly as she always had. "It is good to see you again, old friend," Te'ijal greeted her with a slight smile.

"It is good to see you as well, Te'ijal," the Oracle greeted her in reply. "It is a shame that we must always meet when the world is in danger. You've changed a lot since the last time we met. You don't look quite as sickly, and appear to have a certain glow about you."

"The two of you can catch up later," Edward interrupted. "Why did you call us here? Did you know that we would need to be rescued?"

"Yes, I saw what happened, and I brought you here to both rescue you, and warn you," The Oracle said with a small sigh. "You are all in great danger. The whole world is in great danger, for the Darkthrop Prophecy is upon us, and your friend is at the heart of it. She has begun her reign of terror."

"Do you know why Mel and Galahad are acting so strangely?" Stella asked. "Why did Galahad try to strangle Edward? Why did Mel imprison all those rulers?"

The Oracle did not reply at first, as she turned and began hobbling towards one of the windows, staring off into the sunset. She may often look and act like a clueless old granny, but she was wiser than anyone else in all of Aia. Not only that but she could also see the future. Even though she claimed that her foretelling wasn't what it used to be, she could still see enough to stay informed.

"Your friends brought something back with them from the demon realm, did they not?" the Oracle asked.

Stella nodded, "Mel brought back a staff filled with magic of the darkest kind. I've never sensed so much darkness in a single object before."

"It was the Staff of Destiny; an ancient weapon that holds the heart of the wickedest demon to ever live," the Oracle began to explain. "The demon is able to control Mel while she holds it, and eventually it will take control of her completely, and she will become the demon itself."

"And what of my husband?" Te'ijal asked.

"Galahad may be a vampire, but his heart is pure. This is both good and bad. He has been corrupted by the demon realm as well, but he is stronger than Mel, and has more motivation to resist than she does."

Te'ijal groaned. She knew that she shouldn't have let Galahad go. Although, she supposed that there wasn't much she could have done to stop him. He was just as stubborn as she was, if not more. He probably would have still gone, even if he had known that this would happen. Why did he have to be so selfless?

She was so frustrated and felt utterly useless. It should have been her that went after Mel! She knew for a fact that her heart wasn't pure, meaning that she would have been able to rescue Mel without being corrupted. If only Beatrice had done as she was told and bitten her instead of Galahad. None of this would have ever happened.

As she let herself dwell on those thoughts, she felt herself shiver, which reminded her of the child forming inside her, and she realized that the child would not exist if Beatrice had bitten her. She could not bring herself to regret the existence of hers and Galahad's child. It made him happy, and although she would never outwardly admit it, it made her happy as well.

"It is the love he has for both his wife and unborn child that motivates him to fight," the Oracle added.

This comment momentarily caught Te'ijal off guard, but not for much longer. "I should have guessed that you would know," she remarked.

The Oracle let out a small laugh. "It was as much a surprise to me as it was to you, my dear. I have never seen a vampire halfling before."

This shocked all three of them. If the Oracle had never seen one, then there was no doubt about it ... The child truly was the only one of its kind. "The baby won't harm her in any way, will it?" Stella asked, a hint of concern in her voice.

The Oracle shook her head. "I am unable to see the child's fate as of the moment, for I shall have to wait at least a few more months before that, but let's just say that I wouldn't worry about it too much. Te'ijal is not the type of person to let herself die."

Te'ijal couldn't help but smile at that. She got the feeling that the Oracle meant she wouldn't be dying for a long time, and that suited her just fine.

"So, what must we do to save our friends?" Edward asked. "Do we take the staff away from her?"

"Yes, but before you attempt such a task, you will need to travel to Mysten Far and retrieve the Stone of Aya. You must use the stone on your friends to cleanse their souls after the staff has been removed. It is the only way to save them."

The three of them nodded in agreement. "We shall do as you have instructed us," Edward promised.

With that, they turned to leave. They managed to get to the door before the Oracle called for Te'ijal to wait a moment, slowly hobbling over to her. "After this is all over, and you are further along in your pregnancy, I would very much like it if you would come and visit me," said the Oracle. "I am curious to see how the child develops."

"I shall try, if my nausea allows me to travel."

"And if you're not too stubborn to leave your house," the Oracle remarked with a slight giggle. "I imagine you will find it harder to move later on as the baby grows within you."

Te'ijal groaned. "I am definitely not looking forward to that."


	8. Chapter 8

Galahad had never felt so monstrous. Not even after he had been turned into a vampire the first time. He had always clung to the hope that there was still goodness inside him, but now ... He wasn't so sure ... There was something wrong with him. He could feel it. There was darkness inside him, and it was slowly spreading further and further with each day that passed.

The vile thoughts filling his head were driving him to insanity. They kept telling him to kill every single person or creature that stood in his way. He had never killed unless he felt that the person deserved it. The thieves of Sedona who had been trying to kill the king for centuries ... They were among those he felt deserved punishment. They did not steal because they were forced to, as some did. No, these thieves killed and stole because they were greedy.

As ashamed as he was to admit it, there had been a brief moment when he had been tempted to kill both Stella and Edward. Deep down, he knew that they had tried their best to protect Te'ijal, but the beast inside of him roared to life ... His whole body trembled at the realization that had he held on for but a moment longer, his dear friend, Edward Pendragon, would have been dead. He had almost taken the life of an innocent, and he couldn't forgive himself for that.

He was scarred by the memory of his wife backing away from him, as if she was afraid. She too had sensed that there was something wrong with him. Te'ijal wasn't afraid of anything. Well ... almost anything ... Unlike him, she had always embraced the dark lifestyle of the undead. She thrived as a vampire. She knew how to bargain with every kind of undead species. It had never bothered her. But when she saw it inside him ... That frightened her.

In a way, that look of fright on her face was the very thing that was saving him from falling completely into darkness. He knew that he had to keep fighting with all of his might, not for his own sake, but for the sake of his wife and child. They needed him, and that was exactly why he had to find a way to break free from the darkness inside of him. However, the problem was that he didn't know what had caused it in the first place. Was it the demon realm itself? Was it the demon they had fought? He had no idea.

He didn't even know where Te'ijal was. She had disappeared into a ball of light before his eyes. Had it been a ball of darkness, he would have assumed that it was Gyendal's doing, but such was not the case. That had been the work of a white mage. The only white mage he knew was Stella, oh, and Uma, but as far as he knew, neither of them knew how to create portals. He had absolutely no idea. His only hope was that she was safe, wherever she was.

"Are you okay?"

He immediately jumped to his feet, ready to kill whoever dared to interrupt his thoughts. He was about to reach for his sword, when he saw that it was only Mel. Taking a deep breath, he tried to calm himself down. "Forgive me, Mel," he apologized, pulling his hand away from the hilt of his sword. "I was deep in thought and didn't notice you approach."

"Yeah, I could see that," Mel said, sitting down next to him on the stairs. "What's going on? Are you worried about our friends or something?"

Galahad didn't exactly want to tell her about his battle against evil, fearing that she too was being corrupted. "Yes. I am worried about my wife in particular. She is in far more danger than the rest.

Mel furrowed a brow at him. "What do you mean? Te'ijal's one of the strongest of the group."

"She is, and I have no doubt about her abilities, but the fact that she is a part of this quest is a risk all by itself. If something happens to her, something happens to our child."

Mel's eyes widened as she suddenly went into a violent coughing fit. "Te'ijal is pregnant!?" she exclaimed. "How did that happen? I thought you hated her!"

Galahad chuckled at her reaction. Yes, he had hated her for many years, but not anymore. His feelings towards her had changed greatly over the three-hundred-and-some years that he had been married to her. Their relationship had turned from hate to love, which was crazy to think about, but then again, he couldn't really expect anything less with Te'ijal. She was crazy by nature.

"I haven't hated her since the day she almost burned to death in Darkthrop Keep. I was going to let her die that day, but then two older men at the tavern helped me see that Te'ijal isn't as bad as she seems. As much as she talks about eating humans, I've never actually seen her do it."

"That's true. I asked her to bite Lydia once, and she claimed Lydia was too amusing to eat," she remarked. "She's definitely one of the strangest people I've ever met, and not necessarily in a bad way. I can see why you would be worried. She can be pretty unpredictable ... like the time she jumped from the top of a three story house with me slung over her shoulder."

"She did what?!"

"And then there was the time she abandoned me in the forest, using herself as bait to lead Gyendal's thugs away."

Galahad felt his body go stiff. "We have to find her before she gets herself killed!"

Mel nodded her head in agreement. "I'll send another group of Darklings out to find them."


	9. Chapter 9

Te'ijal watched as the purple haired moth reached out her hands, holding the Stone of Aya over the unconscious bodies of Mel and Galahad. The three of them were relieved and nervous at the same time. They were relieved because the battle's were all over, or, so they hoped at least. Mordred was dead. The Staff of Destiny was lying on the floor, well out of Mel's reach, and they were ready to cleanse their souls. However, they still had their doubts. What if the stone didn't work? What if they were too late to save their friends?

Oddly enough, out of all three of them, Te'ijal was the most optimistic. She refused to believe that it was too late. She knew in her heart that they would be saved. Kneeling down beside her husband, she took his gloved hand in her own. "It's time," she told Stella.

With a nod of her head, Stella began to pour her magic into the stone. No sooner had she done so, then the bodies of Mel and Galahad began to glow brightly, forcing the rest of them to avert their gazes. Te'ijal dared to sneak a little peak at her husband, and she could honestly say that he looked like a heavenly being, glowing with light. She could sense that it was working, as his usually stiff body began to relax, and a wave of calmness washed over his features.

The glowing gradually dissipated, and everyone held their breath, waiting to see if their friends would wake up. At first, there was no sign of movement, but then Edward saw Mel's eyes began to flutter open. "Mel!" he exclaimed. "You're all right!"

"Ugh ... What happened? Where are we?" Mel asked, getting to her feet with assistance from Edward.

"Do you remember anything?" Stella asked her.

"I thought I saw my evil old ancestor ... then there was lightning ... Ugh ... It's all so blurry."

Just then, Te'ijal noticed Galahad starting to stir, and thus returned her focus to him. Letting out a slight groan, Galahad reached to massage his head. "What's going on? Why does my head feel it just got clobbered by a troll?"

"Good to see you're back to normal finally, husband," Te'ijal said with a giggle.

At the sound of her voice, Galahad's sat up and turned to face her. A huge grin broke out across his face as he reached out and pulled her into his arms. Te'ijal was taken a bit by surprise, but didn't object, wrapping her arms around him in return. They clung to each other for quite some time, savouring each other's presence before pulling away.

"Are you all right, wife?" Galahad asked. "I didn't accidentally harm you during the battle, did I?"

Te'ijal rolled her eyes. "I am just fine, Galahad. I told you that I am capable of taking care of myself."

Galahad let out a sigh of relief. "Thank the goddess!"

Edward and Stella quickly filled them in on everything that had happened while they were gone. They told them about how they had been teleported to Aveyond by the Oracle, and how they had gone to Mysten Far in search of the Stone of Aya. Stella explained how she had gotten her wings back by passing the Trials of Citrelium, which she was obviously happy about. She greatly enjoyed being able to fly again.

"So, is everything over now?" Mel asked. "Can I try to live in peace? No more running away from evil vampires and dark sorcerers?"

"I believe so, Mel," Stella told her.

"Yes, all that's left to do now is free the prisoners and return to Thais," Edward stated.

"Thais? Are you sure you're ready to face Lydia?" Stella asked.

Edward nodded his head in determination. "Lydia's time as queen is over. It's time for me to step up to my responsibility and take the throne for myself."

"Finally!" Mel exclaimed. "It took you long enough to get to this point!"

Everyone laughed. Even Edward had to admit that it had taken him a long time to get that far. He had spent so many years trying to run from his royal obligation, thinking only of himself and his own desires. He never realized how important his kingdom was to him until it was taken away from him. Mel couldn't help but smirk as she realized just how much he had changed since the day she first came traipsing into the School of War and Magic. He had matured greatly, and she knew that he was finally ready to be king.

"Come on, let's get going," Edward said, as he began to lead the group down the hall towards the dungeon. "The sooner we finish freeing everyone and returning them to their rightful kingdoms, the sooner we can go home."

* * *

Next up: Edward and Stella's Wedding! Also, sorry if this chapter was a bit shorter than usual.


	10. Chapter 10

Te'ijal groaned as she failed, for probably the sixteenth time, to properly fasten her dress in the back. She was four months along now, and it was starting to become noticeable that she was indeed pregnant. It didn't matter what she wore, it seemed. Her belly was noticeable in almost everything, especially the dress that she was currently trying to squeeze into. It was a nice dress, long, red and silky, with little gold details around the collar. Normally she would have loved it, but she didn't.

"Let me give you a hand with that," Galahad offered.

Coming up behind her, tugging at the fabric until it was fastened the way it was supposed to be. Unfortunately, that just made the dress feel even tighter to her. She sighed. She knew that she was going to have to start having clothes specially made to fit her growing body, but a part of her stubbornly refused to do so, trying her hardest to remain in her normal clothes for as long as possible.

"I look horrible," Te'ijal declared.

Galahad shook his head, wrapping his arms around her waist and gently stroking his hands along her belly. "You look beautiful, my love," he insisted. "I know you don't like gaining weight, but you just have to remember that it is for a good reason. Our baby is growing inside of you."

"Yes, its hard for me to forget that, especially when the baby is constantly moving around in there," she said, placing her hands on top of Galahad's.

Just then, as if on cue, Galahad felt a tiny little kick underneath his hand. His heart swelled with joy. He loved being able to feel the baby moving. It proved that he or she was alive. He could hear his or her heart beating stronger than ever before. As far as he could tell, the baby was happy and healthy. "That too is a good thing."

There then came a knock at the door. "Are the two of you decent?" Mel called from outside.

"Come on in, Mel," Galahad called back pulling away from his wife to finish fastening his armor.

The door opened and Mel came in, followed by Stella, and two other girls that neither Te'ijal nor Galahad had ever seen before. One of them was older, with tanned skin and long blonde hair, while the other was younger, with shoulder length brown hair. Galahad had absolutely no idea who they were, but Te'ijal had a bit of an idea. Mel had mentioned that she briefly traveled with two girls while in Eldrion. Obviously neither her nor Galahad had been with Mel at the time, seeing as they had been living in Sedona.

"We just came to let you know that the wedding is about to begin," Mel explained. "However, I suppose I should first introduce you to Yvette and June. They came all the way from Eldrion for the occasion."

"It's a pleasure to meet the two of you," Galahad said, nodding his head to them in respect. "We'll be ready as soon as I find my vambraces. Te'ijal, do you have any idea where they are?"

Nodding her head, Te'ijal walked over to the bed and picked up her cloak, revealing the two shiny vambraces underneath. "As always, they're hidden beneath my cloak."

"I should have known," he replied.

He quickly fastened them to his arms, making sure they weren't going to come loose before finally turning back to face the girls. With nothing more left to do, they filed out of the guest room, and began their march through the palace. As soon as they reached the balcony, where the wedding was taking place, Te'ijal, Yvette, and June went to go take their seats. Linking arms with the bride to be, Galahad began to walk Stella down the aisle, with Mel trailing after her.

Te'ijal smiled with satisfaction as she watched the wedding play out. Edward and Stella were finally able to marry as they had wanted to for so long, without having to worry about Lydia ruining it. The two of them had arranged the wedding themselves, ensuring that it was a much more intimate ceremony than Edward's last wedding. Needless to say, neither of them wanted to be reminded of that fiasco.

Galahad had been asked to give the bride away, in place of Stella's real father, who was unable to do so himself. Stella had begged Mel to be her bridesmaid. Originally Mel had been opposed to the idea, simply because she would have to wear a dress, but with a bit of time, and convincing, she decided that seeing her friend happy was worth a bit of discomfort on her part, and so she agreed. Te'ijal had been offered the role of Matron of Honour, but declined the offer, not wishing to draw anymore attention to herself than was necessary.

"Citizens of Thais, we are gathered here today to witness the marriage of Edward Pendragon and Stella of Naylith," the royal chancellor announced, as Galahad handed the bride off to Edward, who then went to stand at the prince's side, looking exceptionally handsome in the official armor of the Sedonian Royal Guard.

"Edward Pendragon, do you take Stella to be your wife?" the chancellor asked, turning to Edward.

Edward grinned widely "I do."

The chancellor then turned to Stella. "Stella, do you take Edward Pendragon to be your husband?"

"I do," Stella replied, her eyes sparkling as she gazed into her soon-to-be husband's.

"Then, by the power of the goddess, I pronounce you husband and wife," the chancellor declared. "You may kiss the bride."

Everyone clapped as Edward eagerly reached out and kissed his new wife, and in that moment, Te'ijal couldn't help but feel as though she had somehow been transported back in time to the wedding of Rhen and Dameon. The resemblance between them and Edward and Stella was striking. A girl with purple hair and purple eyes... A boy with brown hair and brown eyes ... A healer and a sword singer ... How ironic.

It seemed as though history was repeating itself before her very eyes. The two weddings were also oddly similar, despite the three-hundred year time difference. Both weddings signified a new era for the city. With Rhen and Dameon's, it had signified the end of a decade filled with chaos and destruction. With Edward and Stella's, it signified the end of a Tyrant Queen's rule. Both brought hope to those around them.

Te'ijal smiled as she watched the two of them walk back down the aisle, hand in hand. They would make a good king and queen. There was no doubt of that in her mind. Rhen would be proud of her descendant, and probably proud of her for keeping the promise she made to her. Te'ijal had managed to keep the young prince alive these past few years of danger. Discreetly placing a hand on her belly, she realized that if she could handle keeping an impetuous prince alive, she could handle five more months of pregnancy, as well as the pain of childbirth. She had experienced pain before. Surely it couldn't be much more painful than almost being burned to death.


	11. Chapter 11

Te'ijal let out a breath of relief as she successfully passed through the portal to Aveyond without feeling queasy. She had wondered if she would, based upon her last experience with teleportation. How long ago that seemed. The last three months seemed to go by so slowly in one way, but quickly in another way. Pregnancy had its ups and downs, but mostly downs in Te'ijal's opinion. She still couldn't understand how Rhen had managed to endure seven pregnancies. She had always known that Rhen was strong, but she only realized just how strong she was now that she was getting a taste of what being pregnant was truly like.

Stepping out of the portal, Te'ijal pulled her cloak completely over herself, not to hide her belly, but to keep herself warm, for she still felt as cold as ice, despite the number of months that had passed since she was imprisoned in Underfall. No, there was no use in even trying to hide the fact that she was anymore. At roughly seven months, she was convinced that her belly couldn't possibly grow any bigger.

She felt as though she was the size of a whale. The baby felt so heavy in her womb that she was convinced she was going to give birth at any second. Her belly was so large that it got in the way of everything, even the most mundane human tasks, such as cooking, or even brushing her hair. She was unable to do anything for herself at this point. Getting out of bed in the morning was a struggle, which usually ended in Galahad having to help hoist her up. Getting dressed was easy enough, now that she finally had clothes that fit her, even if they didn't look that great on her.

Another problem she had was putting on her shoes. Her belly was so enormous that she could hardly see her feet, and bending down was not an option. So she was forced, yet again, to let Galahad help her. He didn't seem to mind, but she certainly did. She hated feeling helpless, unable to take care of herself.

However, not everything was negative. There were a few positives as well. Te'ijal had found that she was slowly gaining her vampiric abilities back. She didn't have her vampiric speed yet, but she had the smell and hearing back, which was exactly why they had come to Aveyond. Galahad had noticed these changes and insisted that they consult the Oracle, in hopes of shedding some light on what was going on. Te'ijal had to admit that she too was a bit curious about it.

"Are you all right, wife?" Galahad asked her, placing a hand on her belly, rubbing it gently.

Te'ijal sighed, "Yes, Galahad, I'm fine. Let's just go find the Oracle so that we can go home again."

And so, the two of them followed the path straight past the village of priestess's and to the main temple. Stepping inside, they found the Oracle standing there waiting for them as usual. The old lady smiled at the couple warmly, motioning for them to come forward.

"I am so pleased the three of us, or should I say the four of us, could finally meet while the world is at peace for once," the Oracle greeted them. "Would either of you care for some tea?"

Both Te'ijal and Galahad shook their heads. "We came, just as you asked, in hopes that you might be able to tell us a bit about the child. We assume that it's at least part vampire, seeing as Te'ijal is starting to regain some of her vampiric abilities, but we don't know how much of a vampire it will be," Galahad explained.

"If Te'ijal will take off her cloak, I shall try to look into his future and see if it gives us any clues about that," the Oracle said.

Reluctantly, Te'ijal pulled off her cloak, revealing the huge bulge in her dress. "Do what you must."

Reaching out, the Oracle placed her boney hands on Te'ijal's belly. She closed her eyes for a moment, focusing all of her energy on reaching out to the child inside. Then, her eyes suddenly shot open again as they began to glow. Te'ijal and Galahad glanced at each other, nervous about what she would see. Would it be good? Would it be bad? They were anxious to know.

It took a while, but eventually the Oracle's eyes stopped glowing, revealing the usual foggy dull grey orbs beneath. She took a few moments to gather her thoughts before retracting her arms and looking up at the two. "Well, from what I can see, it appears to be half vampire and half human. In time, you will find that it has all the abilities of one. It appears to be able to walk in the sunlight without the use of sunscreen, which I imagine is a good thing," the Oracle began to explain.

"Will that have any further effects on Te'ijal?" Galahad asked.

The Oracle shrugged. "She appeared to have regained her status as a full fledged vampire, fangs, red eyes and all. Whether that happened as a result of the baby, or Te'ijal having herself turned again later on, that I am unsure of."

Te'ijal smirked, obviously pleased with this news. "And what of the child? What is he or she like?"

The Oracle giggled, laughing at something that was yet unknown to them. "You will have to wait and see to find out what the child is like. However, I can tell you that he will live an exceptional life."

It took both of them to pick up on the little hint that the Oracle had given them, and when they did, their eyes widened. Galahad broke out into a big grin. "Do you mean to say that it's a boy? Am I really going to have a son?"

The Oracle nodded, "Congratulations."

Galahad was overjoyed. He had always wanted a son, to whom he could pass down the morals taught to him by his father, and his father before him. This had been a dream of his even before he met Te'ijal. After several centuries, it was finally becoming a reality. At that point he didn't care about the fact that his son was half vampire. He focused on the fact that despite being half vampire, he was also half human, and therefore might not have to endure all the struggles that he had to. Nor did he even care that, according to the Oracle, his wife would one day turn back into a full vampire. He was just too happy to hear that he would have a son.

"Well, I had hoped for a girl, but I suppose I could teach my tricks to a boy as well," Te'ijal remarked.

Galahad tore away from his own thoughts when he heard that, glaring at her. "You will do nothing of the sort! The last thing we need is for history to repeat itself and have our son steal some poor maiden's soul!"

The Oracle laughed as the two of them argued about that. Although she had caught a glimpse of the boy in her vision, she still found herself how he would turn out. It was undeniable that he would be different from other children. How could he not be with parents such as Te'ijal and Galahad? However, she wasn't particularly worried. She looked forward to another Ravenfoot entering the world. They always seemed to make life a bit more exciting.


	12. Chapter 12

Screams echoed through the darkened city streets of Sedona. It had been going on almost all night long, keeping everyone in the whole city awake. Even the king and queen were unable to sleep with the noise. No one knew exactly where it was coming from, but those who were brave enough to venture out of their houses were able to pin point the general direction. It appeared to be coming from the southwestern edge of the city ... down by the graveyard ...

Knowing that did not help those people fall asleep, in fact it probably hindered them more than the ones who insisted on staying inside. Sedonians were generally not a superstitious people, but even they couldn't deny that the screams they heard sounded unearthly. Some of the more skittish citizens came to the conclusion that the ghosts of those in the grave yard had risen from their graves in an attempt to lure their loved ones to them by their screams.

Little did they know that it wasn't the ghosts who were the cause of it. If anything, the ghosts in the graveyard were just as frightened as the living. There was only one person in that whole city who knew the true source of it, and that was none other than Galahad. As he paced back and forth in the hallway outside the bedroom, memories of that night at Darkthrop Keep entered his mind. He had heard those exact same screams as he raced up the stairs of the tower, with Mel and her friends close behind him.

Luckily, the reason she was screaming this time was considerably less life threatening. She had gone into labor shortly after dinner, and Galahad had been a nervous wreck ever since. After waking the midwife and hurrying her back to the house, he had been forced out of the bedroom by said midwife, claiming that childbirth was not something that men should witness. As much as he wanted to be in there, holding Te'ijal's hand through the pain, he decided that it probably wouldn't be best in the end. The fact that the scent of blood was lingering through the air was more than enough to prove that. It was better for him to wait until the blood had been cleaned up and everything before even attempting to go back in there.

Every time he heard his wife scream out, he would jump, wondering whether she would come out of this still alive. He tried to keep himself optimistic, remembering what the oracle had said about their future. For once, he was actually comforted by the idea of Te'ijal becoming a vampire again. At least he wouldn't lose her that way. He couldn't help but let out a small nervous chuckle. He never thought he would find himself appreciating vampirism. He was either losing his mind, or just plain desperate ... Maybe Te'ijal's influence was starting to rub off of him ... That couldn't be good ...

Then, all of a sudden, the screaming seemed to stop, and a piercing cry emerged. Galahad thought for sure he felt his heart jump in his chest, even though it was technically dead. Was it over? Was Te'ijal all right? What about their son? Oh, he couldn't wait to meet their son. Had it not been for the fact that he could still smell blood coming from the room, he probably would have barged in, kicking the door down.

Time seemed to go by slower than ever as he waited for the midwife to come out and give him the official news, and fortunately for him, he didn't have to wait long. Before long, the older woman came out, holding a bunch of bloody cloths, as well as a pail of dirty water, both of which he paid absolutely no attention to.

"May I go in and see them now?" Galahad asked.

The midwife nodded, setting the pail down for a moment as she brought a hand up to rub her ear. "Be warned that I might charge you extra for having to put up with your wife and her screaming. I can't even begin to imagine how you managed to put up with her for the past nine months. That woman is terrifying! She threatened to decapitate me!"

"I assure you, her bark is much worse than her bite."

"Whatever you say, Sir Galahad." And with that, the midwife picked up her pail again, and stepping around him, went on her way.

Galahad took a moment to prepare himself for what awaited him. He was both excited and nervous at the same time. However, choosing to focus on the feeling of excitement, he pushed open the door, closing it behind him as he stepped inside. The sight before his eyes filled him with joy. Reclined on the bed was clearly worn out Te'ijal, her hair in a state of utter disarray, and in her arms, wrapped in a clean cloth, was the tiniest, most precious human being Galahad had ever seen.

"Come, Crumpet," Te'ijal said, glancing over at her husband for the briefest of moments before returning her gaze to the baby in her arms. "I know you're dying to meet him."

Galahad rolled his eyes, but didn't hesitate to go to her side. It was clear to see that she definitely had regained many of her vampiric abilities. After approximately eight hours of labor and another hour of pushing, she still managed to maintain her morbid sense of humor.

Taking a seat on the edge of the bed, he gently wrapped an arm around her shoulders, gazing upon his son's peaceful face. The little boy was perfect in Galahad's eyes. You could already see that he had inherited his father's blonde hair. The boy's eyes were closed, so they were unable to see what color they were, but they didn't worry about that too much. They could both hear that he was breathing. Galahad briefly noticed that he had Te'ijal's upturned nose, and looked as though he would have higher cheek bones like hers as well. To Galahad, he looked more like Te'ijal, but Te'ijal had to disagree, thinking that he looked a bit more like Galahad.

"We haven't decided upon a name for him yet, wife," Galahad remarked.

"Do you remember when I said that I had no memory of my family, aside from Gyendal?" Te'ijal asked, looking up at Galahad.

He nodded his head. "Why do you ask?"

She let out a small sigh. "It is true that I don't have any memories of my family. However, there is a name that has always been stuck in my head ... It has been there ever since the moment I woke up and realized what I was. I believe it might have belonged to a family member of mine. I've always liked to think that it was the name of my father."

"What is it, my love?"

Te'ijal hesitated for a moment before finally answering. "The name is Cer'iq."

Galahad pondered the name. It was a bit of a strange name, with a strange pronunciation, but he honestly expected nothing less from Te'ijal. Some people might find it a bit strange, especially in Sedona, but then again, most of them already knew that Te'ijal was a foreigner. He wasn't entirely sure if the name would suit him. What if he got made fun of because of his name?

He was just about to tell her that they should try to pick a name that sounded more normal, when the baby's eyes began to flutter open. That was when he saw them ... A pair of purple eyes, almost identical to Te'ijal's were staring back at him. They were absolutely beautiful. As he gazed into those purple eyes, he realized that this boy was anything but normal. He was unique, the only one of his kind, and therefore it was only right that he have a unique name as well.

"I think the name will suit him perfectly."

Te'ijal smiled wholeheartedly, feeling happier than she ever had in her whole life. "Then that shall be the little back breaker's name," she said. "Cer'iq Ravenfoot Teomes."


	13. Chapter 13

Te'ijal groaned as she heard Cer'iq crying for what she believed to be the hundredth time that night. She finally understood why new mothers always looked so tired ... For the last couple months of pregnancy, she hadn't slept because the baby kept kicking her in the ribs and bladder, which in turn caused her to have to get up and go to the bathroom. With the baby finally out of her body, Te'ijal had expected to be able to sleep easier, but of course that was not the case. Now, instead of kicking her, it cried all night.

"Cer'iq is crying again," she said, nudging Galahad with her foot. She was exhausted, and did not want to get out of bed!

Galahad turned around to face her. "Yes, I can hear that loud and clear," Galahad said. "I can't imagine what he wants now. You just fed him."

Te'ijal wasn't entirely sure if all babies were like that, or if it was just Cer'iq, but he seemed to require a lot of food. It was annoying to her, because she was the only one who could provide him with food. The first time the mid wife had told her what to do to feed her son, she had been freaked out. How on earth was she supposed to know that milk squirted out of her breasts? They had never done that before!

"He's your son. You can go deal with him," Te'ijal announced, pulling the blanket up over her head.

"He's your son too, Te'ijal," Galahad reminded her.

"I'm quite aware of that, Crumpet, but you are a vampire, and don't require as much sleep. You refuse to turn me back yourself, so you can have the responsibility of taking care of him while I receive the sleep that I need as a pitiful weak human."

Galahad rolled his eyes at her, but pushed back the covers and got out of bed. She often used her humanity as an excuse. He knew that she hated being human, even though she had regained some basic vampiric abilities. It wasn't enough for her. She wouldn't be satisfied until she was back to her former self. A part of him wanted her to turn back, but a part of him still clung to the idea of having an at least half-human family.

Putting that thought from his mind, he focused on the task ahead; tending to Cer'iq, who was still crying his tiny little head off. Making his way across the hall, he pulled open the door of the nursery. The room had once been used as a storage room for his weapons and armor, but when Cer'iq came into the picture, they had moved all of it into a different room, and converted it into a nursery. Sadly, it was still quite bare, the only pieces of furniture being a crib, a table for changing and bathing him, and a wooden rocking chair.

To be honest, him and Te'ijal had been discussing the possibility of moving. The fact remained that they were not a human family. It was getting annoying because he had to smother himself in sunscreen every single morning before he went off to serve the king. If Te'ijal ever went and got herself turned again, which he had a feeling she would, they would definitely need to leave Sedona.

The only problem was that they didn't know where to go. They couldn't exactly go back to Ghed'ahre, as much as Te'ijal wanted to. It horrified Galahad to think of their son being raised in a town filled with crazy, blood-thirsty vampires. So far, they were still trying to come up with ideas. Another idea that he had immediately rejected was Underfall. There was no way he was going back to that evil city! The memories of that place still haunted him on occasion.

"All right, Papa's here," he said, picking up the screaming infant.

Galahad tried everything he could think of to get him to stop crying, but nothing seemed to work. Cer'iq didn't smell, so he obviously didn't need a diaper change. Their son had only been alive for four months, and Galahad could honestly say that he was not expecting parenthood to be so difficult and confusing. Galahad had a much better understanding of what children needed than Te'ijal did, and yet even he was still baffled. What in Aia was wrong with his son? He couldn't possibly be hungry again!

That was when he saw it. As Cer'iq opened his tiny mouth to scream again, Galahad couldn't help but notice that he appeared to have tiny little fangs. In a state of shock, Galahad nearly dropped him, but quickly caught him with his vampiric reflexes before any harm could befall him.

"Te'ijal!" Galahad yelled.

With his vampiric hearing, he heard his wife let out a groan across the hall, but heard the sound of footsteps approaching shortly after, which was a relief to him. Te'ijal entered the room, half asleep, with an irritated expression on her face. One thing that Galahad had quickly learned from living as a human with Te'ijal, was that she was always grumpy at night, probably because she never had the energy to stay awake all night as she had as a vampire.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"Cer'iq ... H-He ... He has fangs!" Galahad stuttered.

Hearing that, all traces of tiredness seemed to vanish from Te'ijal. Her eyes lit up as she shot out and took Cer'iq from him. The grin that he had always remembered seeing while they were vampires, and had secretly missed, emerged across her face as she gently pulled his lip up, revealing that there were indeed two tiny little fangs growing in.

"What wonderful news this is," she remarked. "It also explains why he is always hungry."

"What do you-" Galahad began to speak.

Before he could finish that sentence, Te'ijal did something that he was not at all expecting, and jammed her wrist into the baby's mouth. She left it there for a few moments before pulling it away, and when she did there were two tiny bite marks present, a drop of blood trickling down her arm. With his thirst finally quenched, Cer'iq finally stopped crying, and was able to fall asleep.

"I should have known that milk alone wouldn't satisfy him. He is half vampire after all. He requires blood as well," Te'ijal stated.

Galahad couldn't believe it. Their son, at the age of four months, had just drank blood from Te'ijal. As you can imagine, he wasn't too thrilled by the idea. He wasn't exactly sure how to feel about it. He had always known that Cer'iq was half vampire, but he supposed that it hadn't truly sunk in until that moment.

"So, we have to feed him blood instead of milk?"

Te'ijal shrugged. "He survived for the first several months with milk. I imagine his thirst simply got the best of him when his fangs started to come in. He's basically no different from a newly turned vampire."

Galahad felt a wave of uneasiness wash over him. Great! His son was going through the exact same cravings that he had when he was first turned. He had hoped that it wouldn't be the case, but he knew that there was no use in trying to deny it. This was just another issue that they were going to have to learn to deal with.

"Well then, we're going to have to try to ween him off of it, and teach him not to depend on blood," Galahad announced.

At that moment, he made a vow to himself, as well as to his son, that he was going to do everything he could to ensure that he didn't fall prey to the darkness that took over most vampires, teaching Cer'iq to control himself. The last thing he wanted was for his son to do something that he might regret and start thinking of himself as a monster. That was a feeling Galahad knew all too well.


	14. Chapter 14

Cer'iq stood in the middle of the village square, completely transfixed by the fluffy white flakes that fell through the air. Suddenly jumping up into the air, he caught one in his hand. Due to the fact that his hands were just as cold, if not colder, the flake did not melt, allowing it to retain it's beautiful shape. After a few moments of silently admiring it, he closed his hand around it and started running back towards his house.

Once there, he pushed open the door and rushed inside, failing to remove his snowy boots before taking off in search of his parents. Luckily, it didn't take him long, as he soon found his father in the living room, reading a book by the fireplace.

"Papa, look! I caught a snowflake!" Cer'iq exclaimed happily. He opened his hands to show him the snowflake, but was disappointed to see that it had partially melted from the warmth of being inside. "Well, It was a snowflake..."

Looking up from his book, Galahad chuckled and patted his son on the head as he began to pout. "Snowflakes are meant to be kept outside for a reason, my boy."

The family of three had just made the move from Sedona to the village of Thornkeep in the northern isle. Cer'iq was a bit hesitant to move at first. He had rather liked living in Sedona, but after an _incident_ involving Te'ijal occurred, they had been forced to leave and find a new place to live, a place where they wouldn't have to worry about hiding so much. It had taken them a long time to find such a place, having very few options, but then they remembered the place where Cer'iq had been created; Thornkeep.

So far it seemed to be the perfect place for them. The village usually didn't receive much sunlight, and that was good. There were very few other villagers, only the elderly innkeeper and his wife, the herbalist, who was delighted to finally meet their son. Few travelers dared to venture so far north, but every now and then a merchant from Sedona came to the village, and they were able to stock up on the supplies they needed when he did. They were all satisfied with their new home for the most part. Galahad in particular liked that they were able to stay in the Overworld, and live a somewhat normal life.

"Cer'iq Ravenfoot Teomes! Why is there snow all over the floor!?" Te'ijal yelled from the other room.

Cer'iq gulped as he glanced at the floor. Sure enough, he had left a trail of snow. Knowing that it wouldn't take long for his mother to find him, he quickly hid behind the couch, hoping that by doing so, he might be able to hide from her. Unfortunately for him, it didn't seem to work. A moment later, Te'ijal came storming into the room, heading straight towards the couch. Leaning over, she reached down and grabbed him by the collar of his tunic, hoisting him up so that he was dangling in midair.

"You should know by now that it does you no good to hide from me," Te'ijal stated, her blood-red eyes glaring into his. "I can hear every step you make, no matter what room you are in. Now, go take off your boots and clean up the mess you made."

With a sigh, Cer'iq nodded his head, "All right, mommy."

Hoisting him back over the couch, she set him back down on his feet, watching as he quickly scampered off. "Well, at least he listens to us. Most human children I've seen do not listen to their parents."

Galahad was surprised by how obedient Cer'iq was as well. He would occasionally protest when it came to chores, especially when it came to chores, but most of the time he listened and obeyed his parents. There had been a rough patch in his life, about a year ago. It turns out there was a reason people called the terrible twos. His thirst had gotten a bit out of hand, and he didn't know how to control it. They had been forced to keep him under their constant supervision because he would try to bite any and all guests they had. Thankfully, it didn't last too long, and he was not able to control himself.

Cer'iq was only three years old, but you would honestly never guess it. He had recently hit a growth spurt and now looked more like a five-year old. He could talk almost as well as any adult, although he did still occasionally struggle with some more difficult words. A part of Galahad felt uneasy about his son's rapid growth, yet he was also pleased at the same time because it meant he could start teaching his son how to use a sword soon, and train him to defend himself if need be. He was looking forward to that.

Just then, there came a knock at the front door. "There here!" Cer'iq exclaimed happily.

Putting his book down, Galahad got to his feet and went to get the door, Te'ijal following after. Both of them were relieved to see that the floor was no longer covered in snow. "Good job, Cer'iq," Galahad praised his son.

Cer'iq grinned at his father, but soon after averted his eyes towards the door. Today was the day that he would finally get to meet his mother and father's friends, or at least some of them, and he was so excited. As his parents opened the doors and began to greet their friends, he couldn't help but peak around the door frame. There was a brown haired man, dressed in a full suit of armor, a long shiny sword with a shiny diamond attached at the hilt hanging at his side. Beside him was a pretty purple haired woman with darker skin and blue butterfly wings.

The man kind of reminded him of his own father, as he had seen his father dressed in armor plenty of times as well, but the woman ... She was pretty, and had a kind looking face, but she smelled like the mothballs in the attic. He noticed that there was a purple haired little boy in her arms that looked like he might be close to his age. That pleased him. He would finally have someone to play with!

"Aren't you going to introduce us to your handsome little boy?" the woman said once they were all inside the house.

"Of course. This is Cer'iq," Te'ijal introduced. "Cer'iq, these are our friends, Edward and Stella Pendragon, and their son, Michael."

Cer'iq waved and went towards Stella, reaching up to feel her wings. "Are you a Na... Nay ... Nayditian?" he asked. "Mommy says your kind are hard to catch but still tasty."

"Te'ijal, why did you tell him _that_?!" Galahad exclaimed, turning to face his wife.

Te'ijal laughed, "I was telling him about our trip to Naylith, and he asked what the people were like. I only gave him my honest opinion, crumpet."

Galahad pinched the bridge of his nose. "Unbelievable," he muttered.

They all went into the living room and sat down. Michael and Cer'iq went off to play in Cer'iq's room, leaving their parents to talk and catch up on what all had happened in the last three years since they had seen each other last. As you can imagine, there was a lot to talk about. Edward and Galahad started discussing politics and military tactics, while Stella and Te'ijal talked about things that were considerably less boring. Eventually the men got tired of their own discussion and joined the women.

"So, Te'ijal, how exactly did you turn back into a vampire?" Edward asked. "Did you go back to Ghed'ahre and convince someone to turn you?"

Te'ijal shook her head. "No, Galahad turned me."

Both Edward and Stella looked over at Galahad, their eyes wide with disbelief. How could that be, they wondered. They both knew that if Galahad had bitten her, and drank her blood, he would have become a full vampire, with glowing red eyes and pale skin, but he obviously hadn't. Galahad looked no different from usual.

Galahad rolled his eyes, "It didn't happen the way you think it did."

"It turns out that all I had to do to become a full vampire again was receive a transfusion of fluid," Te'ijal explained.

"She bit me ... again," Galahad clarified, moving his hair out of the way so that they could see the fresh bite marks.

Edward and Stella were speechless for a while, not knowing what to say. However, they recovered from their shock after a while, realizing that they really shouldn't have been all that surprised. Te'ijal and Galahad's relationship had always been a bit crazy. They doubted that would ever change.

"Anyway, did you hear that Mel has finally got a boyfriend?" Stella asked.

"I never thought I would see the day," Te'ijal replied. "Tell me, who is the lucky man?"

"His name is Lars Tenobor VIII, and he's a nobleman from Velderah," Stella explained.

Te'ijal couldn't help but burst out laughing. It was just too funny for her to handle. Mel was dating a descendant of the original Lars Tenobor. Even Galahad found it funny and began to laugh. Neither of them could imagine Mel with someone like Lars. First of all, she hated nobles. Second of all, she hated snobs. Either Mel had lost her mind, or this Lars was the complete opposite of his ancestor. Whatever the case was, they were looking forward to meeting him.


	15. Chapter 15

The streets of Velderah were just like Te'ijal remembered them, scattered with both slaves and nobles. She couldn't help but remember how much Rhen had hated slavery, mostly because she herself had been one at one point. She had tried to convince the empress to outlaw slavery after becoming queen, but it didn't work. There were too many nobles in her kingdom who claimed that there was nothing wrong with having slaves. It seemed that it still had yet to be outlawed completely.

However, the city did also bring back some good memories as well. As she walked through the crowded streets with both Galahad and Cer'iq at her side, she couldn't help but stop as she found herself standing in front of a building that she remembered all too well. It once was owned by a necromancer, who sold powerful, yet also dangerous objects, and for the right price would cast dark spells on people. It had once been the most amusing shop in town, but sadly it had now been turned into a laundromat. How boring ...

"Is something wrong, wife? Why have you stopped?" Galahad asked from a bit up ahead, having just noticed that Te'ijal was no longer walking beside him.

"Crumpet, do you recognize this shop?"

Galahad looked over at the shop, giving it a thorough examination before looking back at his wife. "It's just a laundromat. I don't recall ever coming here to have my clothes washed," he replied.

"What's so interesting about it, mother?" Cer'iq asked.

Te'ijal began to laugh. Neither of them had any idea. To be honest, she hadn't expected them to. Galahad hadn't been with her at the time that she discovered this shop, and she had never told Cer'iq the story. She figured that now might be a good time, seeing as they were standing right in front of it, and did have a bit of time to spare before they needed to meet up with the others. Galahad would probably be mad at her for telling the story, but she didn't care.

"A long time ago, before I met you, crumpet, I came across this shop. All the other shops in the city were horribly mundane and boring, but this one wasn't. It was run by a necromancer, who was particularly fond of turning people into wild boars," she explained. "In this shop of his were many powerful and dangerous trinkets. Among them was a beautiful silver pendent that had the ability to steal someone's soul."

Galahad's eyes widened as it suddenly dawned on him that she was talking about the exact same pendent that she had used to steal his soul. "Of all the things you could have remembered in this city, why, oh why, did it have to be that!?" he exclaimed.

Cer'iq had absolutely no idea about the meaning behind this story, and so he could only glance back and forth between his parents, looking at them with confusion.

Te'ijal smirked at Galahad as she walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Oh come on, crumpet, it's not that bad of a memory. Besides, if it wasn't for that pendent, we would never have gotten married, and we would never have had Cer'iq."

As much as Galahad hated the memory of having his soul ripped from his chest, he had to admit that she did have a point. He still thought it was wrong of her to do such a thing to him, but found that he didn't entirely regret it happening. It had brought him down a path that had given him many good things. It had given him a life filled with adventure, which in turn also gave him a great group of friends, all of which he could rely on. It had given him a beautiful wife, whom he had slowly come to love with all his heart, quirky flaws and all, and most importantly, it had given him a son. Those were all things he wouldn't change for the world.

"While I'm not about to thank you for that, I will agree that good things did come from it," he admitted.

"I'm glad." Satisfied by his answer, Te'ijal quickly reached up and kissed him on the lips.

Galahad wasted absolutely no time in kissing her back, pulling her closer so that their bodies were pressed together as he wrapped his arms around her waist. Unfortunately, they got a bit carried away and forgot that not only was their son standing not even five feet away, his face twisted in disgust as he clamped his hands over his eyes, but everyone who passed them in the street was watching as well. None of them seemed too pleased.

"Ew! Stop that, you two!" Cer'iq exclaimed.

Breaking apart, Te'ijal and Galahad could only laugh, half at themselves, and half at their son. As any other four year old child probably would, Cer'iq found it gross to watch his parents be all mushy and romantic. However, they had no intention of going easy on him. Cer'iq was simply going to have to get used to it.

"Te'ijal! Galahad! Thank goodness I found you!"

They suddenly stopped laughing as they heard an all too familiar voice calling their names. Running towards them was none other than June, the young mage they had met at Edward and Stella's wedding in Thais. As soon as she had reached them, she stopped, leaning against Galahad's shoulder as she caught her breath.

"What are you doing here, June?" Galahad asked. "Shouldn't you be back at Shadwood helping Mel get ready for her wedding?"

"We need your help," she replied. "Mel's freaking out over the wedding and no one else can calm her down. Stella tried, but Mel just ended up snapping at her."

Te'ijal nodded her head in understanding. She had her suspicions about what was going on, and why Mel was freaking out. June was right to seek her for help in this matter. "Galahad, you and Cer'iq can go get ready with the other men. I'll deal with Mel."

And so, they parted ways. Cer'iq went with his father towards the inn, where the men were to be getting ready, while Te'ijal followed June to the school, where the girls were to be getting ready. It was the first time Te'ijal had ever been inside Shadwood Academy. She had seen the outside of it while she was traveling with Rhen, but that was it. These were unfamiliar hallways to her, so she had no choice but to let June lead her to Mel's room.

A few students gaped at her as she passed by, probably because they had never seen a vampire before. For the most part she tried to ignore them, but as you can imagine, old habits die hard, and since Galahad wasn't around to scold her, she figured she could get away with having a bit of fun. Mel had told her about this annoying white haired girl whom she claimed was just like Lydia. It just so happened that this same white haired girl, Arana, happened to be roaming the halls.

Suddenly lunging at the girl, she bared her teeth and hissed at her. Arana screamed at the top of her lungs as she ran for her life, her arms flailing about like crazy. "Vampire!" she screamed.

Te'ijal laughed, but continued on walking. Before long, they arrived in front of Mel's door. Room 231 … Once the day was over, it would no longer belong to her. She would be moving into the house her husband-to-be had bought for the two of them to live in. At least that was what she had been told. She still had yet to meet the groom, as he always seemed to be busy when she came to visit. It was suspicious.

Without even knocking, June pulled open the door. Mel was found, sitting on her bed, still dressed in her everyday clothes. From the looks of it, she hadn't even started getting ready yet, despite the fact that the wedding was set to be starting in close to an hour. It was clear to see that Mel was distressed.

Motioning for June to give them a moment, Te'ijal stepped into the room, closing the door behind her for a bit of privacy. "What's troubling you, Lamb?" she asked, taking a seat next to Mel on the bed. "Getting cold feet?"

Mel sighed, glancing over at the vampress. "I guess I am to a certain extent. It's just … Can you honestly see _me_ as a wife and maybe even a mother someday? I just picture it being a disaster."

Te'ijal giggled. "No one is perfect, Mel. I'm sure this Lars doesn't expect you to be the perfect wife, even if he is a nobleman."

"Stella is ... " Mel claimed. "She's the perfect wife, the perfect queen, and the perfect mother. I don't hate her for it, but I can't help but feel as though I'm a mess compared to her."

"The moth isn't perfect either. Believe it or not, she actually finds it a bit overwhelming, trying to juggle all of her different responsibilities, as queen, as a mother, and as a wife," Te'ijal argued. "She probably wishes she had your life. Unlike her, you don't have a bunch of snobby courtiers breathing down your neck, waiting for you to make even the tiniest mistake."

Mel gave her questioning look. "How do you know that?" she asked.

"Rhen had the same problems after she married and became queen. Besides, do you really think it's fun dealing with people like Lydia and her family?"

Mel cringed just thinking about it. She had to admit that, thinking of it that way, it didn't sound like the ideal life. She couldn't help but start to feel guilty for how she had snapped at Stella earlier. She was definitely going to have to go and apologize to her.

"I'm not exactly a perfect wife or mother myself. I can't cook to save my life, and I encourage my son to do things that I know my husband won't like."

"You're right," Mel admitted with a laugh. "I suppose I can't be any worse than that. Thanks for helping me see reason."

With a grin, Te'ijal rose from her seat, and grabbing the white dress that was slung over the end of the bed, held it up in front of Mel. "Your welcome. Now, let's get you ready for your wedding."


	16. Chapter 16

Cer'iq couldn't help but be confused as he looked at the pillow with two gold rings laying delicately on it. According to what his father had told him, he was the ring bearer, meaning that he had to walk down the aisle in the middle of the wedding and present the rings to Aunt Mel and her groom. For what reason, he had no clue. Everyone around him always told him that he was remarkably smart for his age, and it was true, for he did know a lot of things. How could he not when his parents had so much knowledge to share with him. However, when it came to weddings he was absolutely clueless.

"Do you know what you're supposed to do, Cer'iq?" Galahad asked, glancing over at his son from the other side of the room as he finished fastening his armor.

"Yes, I believe so," Cer'iq nodded his head, his blonde curls bouncing as he did. "Papa, may I ask you a question?"

"Of course you may, son. What's on your mind?"

"What is the purpose of a wedding?" Cer'iq asked.

Galahad didn't reply at first, pondering how to explain it in a way that his son would understand. "Well, the purpose of it is to join two people together, making them husband and wife, united for the rest of their lives."

"You mean like you and mother?"

"Yes, like your mother and I."

Cer'iq nodded his head in understanding. "Does that mean Aunt Mel is going to bite her groom like mother did to you?"

Galahad momentarily stopped what he was doing, a scowl emerging across his face. He was clearly going to have to talk to Te'ijal about withholding certain details about their relationship from their son.

"No, that wasn't part of the wedding. That was just your mother being her … er, usual twisted self."

Just then, there was a knock on the door. A moment later, Edward and Ulf stepped into the room. Ulf was dressed normally for the most part, but Edward was not dressed at all like he usually did. The King of Thais was dressed as a chicken farmer, with a simple tunic, pair of trousers, and accented with a straw hat on his head. Looking at him now, you would never guess that he was royalty, and that was exactly the way Edward wanted it. He couldn't pass up the opportunity to disguise himself as a peasant. Although, that wasn't the only reason. The other reason being that he didn't want to draw attention to himself or his family on Mel's big day, which was understandable.

"We should probably head out to the venue," Edward stated. "Lars went on ahead with his friends from Shadwood."

Galahad nodded his head. "How is the groom doing?"

"He was doing great the last time I saw him. He's remarkably calm for someone who's about to get married. I certainly wasn't on my wedding day."

Galahad chuckled. "Believe me, neither was I, though, for different reasons."

Edward joined in the laughter. "Come on, the wedding will be starting soon."

With that, the three boys made their way out of the inn, through the city streets and over towards the garden just east of Shadwood Academy. The garden had been decorated for the occasion, rows of chairs had been set out, leaving room for the aisle in between, and at the end of the aisle was an arch decorated with black silk and roses. From where Galahad stood, peaking around the corner of the garden wall, he could see that most of the guests were already present.

Among the guests were Mel's teachers, both from Shadwood Academy and the School of War and Magic. In addition, there were many others, who Galahad presumed to be classmates of Mel and Lars. Stella was seated next to Ulf in the second row on the left-hand side, with her son, Michael, on her lap. Edward went to join them, taking a seat on the other side of Stella.

"Will I be able to go play with Michael after the wedding if over, Papa?" Cer'iq asked.

Galahad nodded his head. "Yes, I'm sure you will be able to. We aren't leaving until tomorrow, and neither are Michael's parents."

The music began to play as the priest stepped out into view, with the groom following shortly behind him. Galahad watched them closely as they went to take their place by the arch to wait for the bride. This was actually the first time he had seen Lars Tenobor VIII in the flesh. He had heard stories of him from Mel, Stella and Edward, but that was it. Now that Lars was standing before his own eyes, he could begin to form an opinion of his own.

As expected, he had a head of shaggy bright green hair, and a slightly olive complexion that was typical of the region. However, the thing that was most striking about him was his eyes. They were gold and oddly ominous looking. Galahad couldn't figure out why, but for some reason, he found those eyes oddly familiar. It was almost as if he had seen them somewhere before … but on whom? And why did he have the feeling that this man was far more dangerous than he let on?

He might have questioned it further, had he not been distracted by the procession of women he suddenly noticed was coming towards him. At the lead was Mel, dressed in a simple, yet still elegant, white gown, her shiny black hair was left hanging, her usual yellow hair bow nowhere to be found. At her sides were June and Te'ijal, both dressed in matching red and black gowns. Galahad had to admit that they were both quite lovely, though, he couldn't help but think that his wife pulled it off better. Te'ijal could make any piece of clothing look good, so long as it was red or black. They were her signature colors.

"Are you ready, Mel?" Galahad asked.

Mel took a deep breath. "As ready as I'll ever be."

Winding her arm around Galahad's the two began to make their way up the aisle, with Te'ijal and June following a few moments later, and Cer'iq following at the end. Galahad couldn't help but feel as if this was some sort of elaborate dream. Mel was actually getting married. It was hard for him to believe. It felt as though it had been only yesterday that he and Te'ijal had gone to save her from the clutches of an evil vampire.

Galahad couldn't help but feel a bit sad at that. The lifespan of a human seemed like nothing but the blink of an eye to vampires, and that had always been one of the many things he disliked about being a vampire. Everyone standing before his eyes would die eventually, but he would remain alive, or rather undead. Although it seemed as though her life was just beginning, Mel would one day die as well, and the thought of it made Galahad's heart hurt. It was a sensation that he hadn't experienced since Rhen had died, yet he remembered it all too well.

He had been miserable for years after the late Queen of Thais had died, attempting more suicide missions than ever before. Eventually, he managed to rise above his grief, and looking back on it now, he realized that it was actually because of Te'ijal that he was able to do so. She had tracked him down, brought him back to Ghed'ahre, reassured him that it was all right to grieve, and eventually ended up dragging him over to Casket Hill. He could still recall how shocked he had been to see Rhen and Dameon living happily, young, carefree and transparent. To see that they were happy, even in death, had helped him more than anything, even if he hadn't understood it at the time.

"Citizens of Velderah, we are gathered here today to witness the union of Lars Tenobor VIII and Mel Darkthrop," the priest began to recite the traditional wedding speech almost as soon as the bride had arrived.

Galahad quickly handed Mel over to the green haired man, sparing a quick glance before going to stand off to the side with his wife, his son quickly scampering toward the bride and groom to present them with the rings before returning to his parents side.

"Lars Tenobor, do you take Mel to be your wife?"

"I do," Lars said a smirk.

Once again, Galahad found there to be something off about him. The way he smirked made him feel strangely alarmed. He had definitely seen this man before. At first, he had blamed it on the fact that this Lars looked a lot like his ancestor, but now he was starting to doubt that. That wasn't a smirk that belonged to the green haired sorcerer that he had traveled with so many centuries ago. No, this smirk belonged to someone else.

Turning to his wife, he was just about to ask her if she found him familiar as well, but stopped as he noticed the expression on her face. Her eyes were wide as she stared at the green haired man, clearly in shock. However, her shock was short-lived as her expression suddenly turned dark.

"That sneaky, underhanded little …" Te'ijal muttered.

"What is it? Do you know why the groom looks so familiar?"

Te'ijal looked over at Galahad a smirk of her own tugging at her lips. "Can you not guess who he reminds you of?"

It was at that exact moment that it dawned on Galahad what she was talking about. Seeing her smirk, which was just as unsettling as the groom's, he realized that it was in fact the same. This man was not Lars VIII. Galahad wasn't even sure if such a man even existed. No, this man was without a doubt, none other than Gyendal Ravenfoot, Te'ijal's brother. The one thing the siblings had always shared in appearance was their signature smirk.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife," said the priest. "You may kiss the bride."

Galahad's fists clenched in anger as he realized that he had realized this too late. His mind was still struggling to process the sudden information. Mel was legally married to Gyendal, the man who had kidnapped her on numerous occasions and tried to use her to take over the world. How in Aia had that happened? Surely she must have known it was him in disguise … No … It couldn't be. She must have been fooled. There was no way that she would willingly marry him!

No sooner had they broken out of the kiss, the newly-wed couple started back down the aisle, hand in hand. Galahad was sorely tempted to march up to them, reveal Gyendal to the crowd, as he was sure that none of them knew the truth either, but Te'ijal held him back.

"Why are you stopping me, wife?" he asked. "He is deceiving them all!"

Te'ijal shook her head at him. "How naive you are, Crumpet. It is clear to see that my brother has fallen in love with the lamb."

"What are you talking about? Have you forgotten how many times Gyendal kidnapped her?"

"Have you forgotten how I tricked you into marrying me and turned you into a vampire?" she shot back. "Honestly, husband, you should know by now that we Ravenfoot's have our own way of doing things."

Te'ijal managed to hold Galahad back long enough for them to exit the garden. However, the moment that they were out of sight, Galahad immediately sprung into action, grabbing Cer'iq and rushing him over to Edward and Stella, informing them that he and Te'ijal would be back to pick him up later before rushing off again. Te'ijal being a bit faster and more experienced at using her vampiric speed was able to catch up with the couple first, cutting them off at the edge of the residential district.

"Did you really think I wouldn't recognize you, little brother?" Te'ijal asked, her arms folded across her chest.

The green haired man sighed, rolling his eyes. "On the contrary, I knew that you would be the first to recognize me, which is why I've been avoiding you for so long. I did not want my cover to be blown in front of the others."

"Oh, I understand that," Te'ijal stated. "I am simply angry that after nine-hundred years of me pestering you to settle down and get married, you finally decide to do so behind my back."

"Says the woman who left for over a year and came back with a ring on her finger and a husband in tow. Be thankful you were even invited. I don't recall receiving an invitation to your wedding."

The two siblings continued to argue for a while, leaving both of their spouses to watch awkwardly from the sideline, unsure of what to say or do. "So … I guess we're all related now." Mel said.

"It would seem so," Galahad replied. "I never imagined that you would end up as my sister-in-law."

Mel looked at the blonde paladin with a small smile. "I have no complaints about that."

Galahad smiled back at her. "Nor do I. It'll be nice to have another sane person in the family."


	17. Chapter 17

_I'm alive! After a long absence, I am back and have continued working on Child of the Night. So, I've got some interesting things planned for the next few chapters, and as far as I can tell, this story is a long way from being finished. This is honestly one of my fave fanfics to write! Anyway, I apologize that this chapter is a bit on the shorter side, but I needed a bit of a filler chapter. Hope you enjoy :)_

* * *

"Gyendal, If you ever do this to me again, I will kill you with own two hands!" Mel declared, letting out a sigh of relief as she finally managed to sit down, though not exactly comfortably.

Te'ijal laughed. Mel and Gyendal had come to visit them, portaling directly from Velderah to Thornkeep. They had kept in touch since the wedding, and both Te'ijal and Galahad were surprised by how well they were settling into their new life. Gyendal was running a guild for chaos mages, which wasn't at all surprising, and Mel had started a highly successful career as a writer, publishing books based off of her own adventures. Te'ijal made sure to purchase a copy of each book she wrote, as she found it amusing to read Mel's thoughts on everyone and everything. Unfortunately, Mel had been forced to take a break from writing recently as she found that her swollen belly often got in the way.

Yes, Mel was pregnant, and heavily so. She was only six months along, but you would never guess, as she looked as though she was ready to give birth at any moment. Knowing all too well how it felt to be pregnant, Te'ijal couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for the girl. After having observed Mel's pregnancy, she realized that she had actually had it rather easy herself. Although that might have had something to do with the fact that she had been turning back into a vampire during the nine-month-long experience. She was pretty sure that Mel was twice the size that she had been at that point, and Mel was having to suffer through all the horrible side effects while still human.

"That's odd because you certainly weren't complaining while we were in the process of creating the child," Gyendal retorted with a sly smirk.

Mel rolled her eyes, wincing in pain as she felt the baby kick her in the rib cage. "If I had known that this would be the result, I might have."

"Have you been to visit the Oracle yet?" Galahad asked.

Gyendal nodded. "We did pay her a visit, unwillingly on my part, and I can honestly say that it was a complete waste of time."

"What do you mean?"

"I went straight to the healers to be examined and as soon as it was determined that me and the baby were both in good health, we were sent home," Mel explained. "The Oracle was acting strange. Well, stranger than usual anyway."

Te'ijal knew the Oracle well enough to realize when she was keeping a secret. The only problem was that she couldn't seem to come up with any ideas as to what the Oracle was hiding from Mel and Gyendal, or why she was keeping secrets from them in the first place.

Just then, Cer'iq came running into the room, heading straight towards his favorite uncle. "Hi Uncle Gyendal!" Cer'iq exclaimed, hopping up onto the couch next to him. "What did you bring me this time?"

"Cer'iq, you're being rude!" Galahad chastised him.

Cer'iq hung his head slightly in shame. "I'm sorry, papa…"

"Pay no attention to your idiot of a father, Cer'iq," Gyendal told his nephew, glaring over at the paladin as he reached into one of the enchanted pockets in his cloak, pulling out a big thick book. On the cover, it read ' _Leyrvo Ahma - A Biography'_. "I believe it is only right that you should know the life story of one of the greatest vampires in history, aside from myself of course."

A huge grin broke out across Cer'iq's face. "Thank you so much! I'll read it over and over until I've memorized it word for word."

Gyendal grinned, all too pleased by his nephew's words. "I would expect nothing less from a Ravenfoot."

Te'ijal let out a small giggle as she glanced over at her husband, who looked like he was ready to kill someone, namely Gyendal. Placing a hand on his knee, she shook her head at him. The relationship between Galahad and Gyendal had not gotten any better since the big wedding revelation. They managed to tolerate each other to some extent, but they were a long way from being friends.

"Wife, how can you be so calm about this?" Galahad asked, leaning over to whisper in Te'ijal's ear. "Your brother is trying to influence our son into being just like him."

Te'ijal rolled her eyes. "He is doing no such thing. The two of them are simply bonding over their shared interests. I for one find it endearing to see them so close to one another."

Cer'iq then went over to sit next to Mel, his new book in tow. "How much longer until my baby cousins arrive?" he asked her.

"A few more months I'm afraid," Mel replied. "I'm not sure how I'm going to make it that long. I can barely move on my own!"

Te'ijal was about to say something in regards to how she knew the feeling, but stopped as she pondered the way Cer'iq had worded his question. "Cer'iq, did you just say ' _cousins'_ , as in more than one?"

Cer'iq nodded his head. "Yes, I can hear two small heartbeats coming from Auntie Mel's belly."

Everyone's eyes widened as the five year old's words sunk in. Two heartbeats meant two babies … Mel was carrying twins! Te'ijal couldn't contain herself and burst out laughing. "Good job, little brother!" she exclaimed. "You've added yet another pair of twins to the family!"

"TWINS!?" Mel screamed, turning to face her husband, her eyes filled with rage. "YOU GOT ME PREGNANT WITH TWINS!?"

"Goddess help me … What have I done?" Gyendal muttered to himself, his face as white as a sheet.

Galahad groaned. "That's just what we need … Another pair of Ravenfoot twins…"

"Well, at least we now know why the Oracle was being so secretive," Te'ijal concluded.


	18. Chapter 18

Cer'iq would never forget the day _it_ happened… For _it_ would change the course of his life forever… The day started well. Cer'iq and his parents had arrived in Thais to visit the Pendragon's, something that he had been looking forward to for weeks. He loved visiting Edward and Stella, though the reason he enjoyed it so much had more to do with their children. Having no other children his age to play with back in Thornkeep, his sole companions were Michael, who was ten, a year younger than himself, and Estelle, who was eight.

With their parents busy catching up with each other, it was the perfect chance for them to sneak out of the castle and have some fun. Michael led them to his secret hideout, an open field filled with wildflowers hidden deep within the woods behind the school. Cer'iq felt at peace there, surrounded by the pure beauty of nature and far enough away from the city that the sounds of the bustling city were nothing but a dull murmur in his sharpened ears.

"Are you sure it's safe for us to be out here?" Estelle asked, looking about nervously. "Surely you remember the stories father told us about all the monsters that roam these woods."

"Of course I remember, but I doubt we're in any danger here. The war students sometimes use this field to practice," Michael claimed.

"Besides, the monsters in these woods can't be any worse than the ones in the Dire Woods," Cer'iq added in. "My father told me that there used to be demons lurking in those woods. That's why I'm not allowed to leave the village on my own."

Estelle's eyes widened. "Demons!? When was this?"

Michael just rolled his eyes at his sister. "Don't be so dramatic, Estelle. Thais used to have demons too, back in the days of our great ancestor, Rhen Pendragon. In fact, from what I've heard, it sounds like Thais was basically ruled by demons before our family took over."

Cer'iq nodded. "My mother told me about that. She says the land was nothing but a barren wasteland at the time. Every last tree was burnt and dead. The city was in absolute shambles. The walls had been utterly destroyed and people didn't dare to leave their houses for fear of Ahriman and his demons."

"I forget sometimes that your parents were actually there, living throughout the events in history that we can only read about," Estelle said. "It's odd to think that they're vampires, considering how normal and… well, nice, they seem."

"What do you mean by that?" Cer'iq raised a brow at that.

There was a brief period of silence in which Michael and Estelle exchanged a glance between each other.

"Look, I know that it's hard to accept it, being half-vampire yourself, but you can't deny that vampires, in general, are evil," Michael said. "My father has told me stories about what happened. He told me about some of the things your uncle did. How he and the other vampires tried to enslave humanity by plunging the world into eternal darkness."

Cer'iq looked away, not wanting to meet his friend's lilac eyes. Of course, he knew all about what Uncle Gyendal had done in the past, having heard stories from his own parents about the Orb Quests. However, he also knew his uncle's reasoning behind it. While he didn't condone what his uncle did, he did understand why he did the things he did. The humans weren't exactly innocent either. They had hurt his uncle, leading him to do those awful things. Of course, he knew he couldn't tell them that. As far as the Pendragon's knew, Gyendal had vanished into thin air and hadn't been heard from since.

"I don't believe that. No one is entirely evil. We all have good and bad in us," he defended his kind, quoting something that his mother had told him once.

"You may see things that way, but the other vampires aren't like that. They are evil!" Michael retorted. "How can they not be? They hunted down my mother, ripped her wings right out of her back and killed her in cold-blooded murder!"

Hearing those words stirred something deep within Cer'iq. They struck him directly in the heart as if the insults were aimed at him. In a way, they kind of were. He was, after all, a vampire, or rather half-vampire. These vampires that Michael was hurling insults at were his kindred, his family, and he didn't like it. He knew for a fact that his friend's claims were false. Not all vampires were evil. Rashnu, the Druid of Darkness, wasn't evil, and his mother claimed to have some friends back in the underworld who weren't evil either. Marcello was one of them.

"Humans have committed their fair share of crimes as well!" Cer'iq retorted. "Has no one ever told you about how humans used to hunt vampires just for the sport of it?"

"Did we really do that?" There was no anger or hostility in Estelle's voice, only an earnest sense of curiosity.

Cer'iq nodded. "I read all about it in a book about the history of Ghed'ahre."

Michael scoffed. "That's probably just a lie the vampires wrote down to try to make themselves look better. The only reason we hunted them was to protect ourselves. According to the memoirs of my ancestors, Vampires we're out of control at that time, much like the demons. My ancestor, Rhen, and her friends had to wear garlic around their necks and carry stakes just to ward them off."

At that, Cer'iq finally snapped. Before he could even comprehend what was happening, he had bolted forward at vampirism speed, grabbing Michael by the neck and pinning him back against a tree.

"They were only out of control because they were starving! They were locked out of the overworld for years because humans like you were staking them for fun! And need I remind you that my mother was among those locked underground at that time, the very same vampress who went on to become your ancestor's friend!" Cer'iq hissed. His fangs which were ordinarily hidden, bared for all to see.

At that moment, it was as if something or someone had possessed him. His body was filled with fiery rage, preventing him from thinking rationally. All he could think about at that moment was the boy whose neck he gripped and how he wanted to do something horrible to the boy…

"Let… me… go…" Michael thrashed to get free but to no avail.

"Cer'iq, please stop!" Estelle cried out. "You're hurting him!"

The Brown-haired princess' pleas fell on deaf ears. For her friend was gone at that moment, replaced by the blood-thirsty vampire that stood before her.

Cer'iq removed his hand from Michael's neck, but he did not release him. Instead, he grabbed him tightly by the arm, preventing him from making a run for it. That was when he noticed the bloody pierce marks in Michael's neck exactly where his nails had been only moments earlier. The sight of blood caused an overpowering thirst to rise in his throat.

His method of revenge upon the boy was made up. Pushing Michael's head to the side, he slowly drew his mouth nearer to the fresh blood locking what was to be found on the outside first.

It was his first real taste of blood and it tasted divine… better than any human food he had ever tasted before. He wanted more… He craved more…

"Stop!" Estelle cried out again.

He was just about to plunge his fangs into the boy's neck, razor-sharp teeth hovering only inches away when he heard an all too familiar voice yell out to him.

"CER'IQ RAVENFOOT TEOMES!"

It was the sound of his father's voice that finally brought him back to himself, and once that had happened, it didn't take long for him to realize what was happening.

Michael, Estelle and himself were locked in a ring of unnatural purple fire. Their parents were standing well enough away, staring at the scene with a mixture of various expressions. However, his gaze was locked on that of only one… his father…

There was shock and horror, but above all other emotions, there was disgust and shame. Cer'iq could see it clearly on his father's face. It was a sight he had hoped to never see.

"Stella, can you put out the flames?" Edward asked his wife.

"I can try," replied the winged woman.

Closing her eyes, the healer reached out her hands and summoned a cloud to come and pour down rain on the ring of fire. The children all got soaking wet as a result, but it proved its purpose in extinguishing the fire, leaving a ring of scorched grass and flowers in its place.

Staggering backward, he released Michael from his grip, staring down at his blood-smeared hands with wide eyes, ignorant to the concerned king and queen who ran past him towards their son.

He had just tried to kill someone… his own friend… he realized that had he not been stopped, he would have drained Michael completely dry. For that was how much control he had over himself at the time.

He felt hot drops of liquid well up in his eyes, trickling down his face, his body trembling uncontrollably. He wanted to express how truly sorry he was, and how he didn't mean to hurt Michael, but he could not bring the words to leave his lips as everyone he opened his mouth he remembered that it was that very same mouth that had consumed his friend's blood. He had never felt so repulsed by himself… like he wanted to rip his own tongue out.

His mind was in chaos. There was no other way to describe it. He was at war with himself. One part of him felt shame and guilt towards his actions, yet at the same time, there was a part that roared within him, craving more of the blood he had sampled. It frightened him

Gazing into the eyes of his friend, he saw that he was staring back at him with pure hatred.

"You're a hypocrite!" Michael spat at him, his voice a bit hoarse. "You claim that not all vampires are evil, but in reality, you're no better than those who slaughter mercilessly! You're just like you're cursed uncle! A vampire and a dark mage!"

The thought that he might have caused the ring of unnatural fire had briefly crossed his mind earlier, but it was soon forgotten as the war waged on inside his head. Only now was he able to comprehend the matter. He had magic, and if what Michael claimed was true, it was dark magic, the one thing he knew his father hated more than almost anything else.

"You're nothing but a monster!"

Those words echoed through his brain, repeating themselves over and over until his brain hurt. Michael was right. He was a monster… He was a vampire… a creature of the night who craved blood. He had always been aware of what he was, but he had never fully grasped the meaning of it before now.

In the blink of an eye, his mother was at his side, one of her spidery hands resting on his shoulder. "How dare you speak such things of my son!" She hissed.

A part of him was relieved to hear his mother defending him, but at the same time, he wished that she wouldn't. Everything that Michael said was true. There was no use denying it. His mother might be understanding of him, but he had a hunch that his father wasn't so understanding. Risking a glance back at the armor-clad man, he saw that he was unchanged. He stood unmoving, his expression still much the same.

Cer'iq hung his head in shame, looking away. He couldn't bear to look upon his father's disgust towards him for long.

"That son of yours just tried to rip my son's throat out!" Edward declared, pointing an accusing finger at Cer'iq. "He endangered two of my children!"

"He's just a boy, practically a newborn when it comes to vampires! It takes years to overcome the thirst!" Te'ijal retorted. "It took me and Galahad at least 300 years!"

Cer'iq gulped. That knowledge was not at all comforting. Was he really going to struggle like this for the next 300 years? That was an awful thing to think of.

"In that case, perhaps it would be best if you and your son stayed away until the time comes that he overcomes his thirst."

"Edward! Surely you do not mean that!" Stella protested. "It was only an accident, and no one was harmed in the end."

"No one was hurt this time, but I will not risk it happening again. I will not have him endangering our children, or anyone in this city for that matter," Edward's mind was made up and everyone could see as much as nobody made any attempts to protest further.

"Very well then, my family and I will bother you no further," Te'ijal said with a hint of bitterness as she turned to leave, pulling Cer'iq along with her. "Galahad, are you coming?" She asked, stopping as they reached him.

Galahad simply nodded his head and started to walk off ahead of them. Not a word was said between them as they went on their way.


	19. Chapter 19

The next few days were rough for Cer'iq. He kept to his room for the most part, hiding under the covers with his hands clamped firmly over his ears, trying to drown out any and all sounds. So far, he was failing miserably in that regard. With his advanced hearing, he couldn't help but hear snippets of the things his parents said, even though they were whispered from the other side of the house.

His parents were arguing with each other over what they should do about him and his _problem_ , as they had taken to calling it. Apparently, this wasn't the first time something like this had happened with him. According to what he heard them say, he had been overtaken by his thirst at least two times before, once when he was only a baby, and then once when he was a couple of years old. His mother had fed him her own blood to sate his thirst. As you can imagine, that didn't make him feel any better.

His mother thought it would be wise to expose him more to humans, to get him used to being around them continuously, but his father disagreed, claiming that would only end in catastrophe. He thought it best to keep him away from humans and try to ween him off of it again. They bickered back and forth for a while about it before they changed the topic to that of the other issue… his magic …

He would need training. That much he had figured out on his own. The problem was how he would get the training and from whom. The School of War and Magic in Thais was out of the question, considering the family as a whole had basically just been banished from the city by the King himself. He wasn't stable enough to attend any school really, so that left only one real option; private instruction.

Cer'iq could think of only one person who qualified for the role, and his mother seemed to have the same idea, but sadly the idea was quickly shot down by his father who was adamantly against it. His father had never trusted Uncle Gyendal, even though he had never been anything but kind, doting upon his nephew. Cer'iq had never fully understood why that was. The only conclusion he was able to come to was that he hadn't forgiven Uncle Gyendal for the bad things he once did.

Eventually, the arguing stopped altogether, and he heard his parents make up, quietly reassuring each other that they would get through this.

The house was quiet for a while after that, allowing Cer'iq to form thoughts of his own. That wasn't necessarily a good thing. He kept replaying that moment over and over in his head as he nearly devoured his friend … ex-friend, he corrected himself. It was clear to him that their friendship had come to an end, and he couldn't blame them for that. Who would want to be friends with a monster like him?

Tears welled up in his eyes again. Reaching up, he wiped them away with his hands, startling himself when he saw that they weren't tears of clear water, but tears of blood. Immediately he jumped up, pushing back the covers and dashed across the room to the vanity that sat in the corner of his room.

The sight that met him in the mirror made him let out a startled scream. His appearance had changed! His reflection in the mirror was faint, but he could still see himself well enough to spot the differences. No longer were his eyes the bright purple that they had always been. Now they were the same deep shade as the bloody tears streaming down his face… And his face … his skin … It wasn't quite as pale as his mother's, but it was still several shades paler than it used to be. His hair was the only part of him that seemed to stay the same.

Just then, his parents burst into the room, stopping dead in their tracks when they saw what had prompted their son's scream.

Cer'iq could only see his father's faint reflection in the mirror, standing behind his own faint reflection. His mother was nowhere to be seen in the glass, even though he could sense her. It was then that he realized something … Something that he had known all along, but never fully understood.

From the very beginning, Cer'iq had always known that he was half-human and half-vampire, but he never fully grasped what it meant to be half-vampire. He finally understood what a vampire was. It was a creature of the night who lived off of blood. They killed innocent people because they were hungry… because it was their nature… because they would suffer if they didn't.

"My vampire side is taking over, isn't it?" It wasn't really a question, as he already suspected that to be the case, but he wanted to hear it from his parents' mouths.

His father nodded, his fists clenched in determination. "It's trying to, but we're not going to let that happen. We're going to help you fight it."

"How!?" Cer'iq snapped, feeling the frustration he felt course through him. Unfortunately, the moment he did so, his curtains lit on fire.

"Galahad, go fetch a pail of water to put that out," Te'ijal instructed, carefully approaching her son. "I'll try to calm him down."

Galahad lingered for a few moments, looking at his son with sad eyes. Eventually, he did as he was told after a stern glare from his wife and left the room, though reluctantly. They heard him grab a pail from the kitchen and head out of the house.

"I'm turning evil…" Cer'iq said through gritted teeth. "I'm a monster, just like Michael said."

Grasping him firmly by the shoulders, Te'ijal spun her son around so that he was facing her. "Tell me, do you regret what happened? Does the fact that you could have killed him make you feel disgusted with yourself?"

His mother had never been one to beat around the bush. She always spoke quite bluntly. She never sugar-coated anything, even when it came to the most disturbing topics. While it could be difficult to take at times, he admired that about her.

He nodded his head. "I've never regretted anything more," he replied. "I didn't mean to hurt him … I would go back and prevent it from happening if I could."

"Do you think a monster would feel that way?" She asked.

He considered the question for a moment before shaking his head. "I suppose not."

"No, a real monster would not be capable of feeling remorse. Therefore, you are not a monster," she began to explain. "Being a vampire is not easy, and most humans do not realize it. For those who are strong enough to hold onto their humanity, it is a constant battle fighting off the bloodlust. The struggle does not make you a bad person, but rather it makes you strong."

"So, I'm not evil … You don't hate me?"

"Of course not. I could never hate you, my little back-breaker," his mother said with a grin, her fangs just barely visible.

Cer'iq let out a small groan. He hated it when his mother called him that. It was one of those nicknames that mother's used to embarrass their children. Surprisingly, it didn't bother him as much this time, probably because of everything else that was going on.

"What … What about Father?" he asked timidly. "Does he hate me? For what happened or for the fact that I supposedly have dark magic?"

Of course, it was that exact moment in which his father chose to re-enter the room. His expression betrayed him right away. He had heard every word that was said. Setting the heaping pail of water down, he strode determinedly towards his son, kneeling down to his level.

"I do not hate you, Cer'iq. If anything, I hate myself for not having prevented such an accident. As your father, I cannot bear to see you hurt, and I know that you are hurt by this. I know it all too well, for I was once in your exact same shoes."

Cer'iq gave his father an odd look. "You lost control and tried to kill someone?" he asked, borrowing some of his mother's bluntness for the moment.

Galahad nodded his head, his eyes closed tightly as he recounted the memory. "It happened when I returned from saving your Aunt Mel in the Demon Realm. I didn't know it at the time, but a Demon had taken residence inside of me, urging me to do awful things. I snapped at Edward, much like you did at Michael, and I nearly strangled him. If I had held on for just a moment longer, I would have killed him."

Cer'iq was shocked, to say the least. Yes, he knew that his father had ventured into the Demon Realm to save Aunt Mel, but he hadn't known that he was possessed by a demon as a result. It certainly explained some things, such as his father's reaction as well as that of the King's. King Edward most likely still remembered that encounter and saw that the same thing was happening to his son. It was no wonder that he banished them as he did.

"The last thing I want is for you to make the same mistakes as me. I was horrified and disgusted, but only with myself for letting it happen," Galahad added. "As for the issue of your magic … I'll admit, I'm not exactly thrilled about it, but I don't hate you for it. I understand that your mother comes from a family of dark mages, which is where you inherited it from, and I know that doesn't make a person necessarily evil either. After all, Mel is one as well."

Cer'iq's heart flooded with joy and relief at his father's words. So much so that he couldn't help but launch himself into his father's arms. Hearing everything that his parents had told him made him feel much better, even if he did still feel guilty about what he had done. Above all, he was overjoyed that his father didn't hate him after all, and that he actually understood more than he initially thought.

The father and son duo remained in a tight embrace for a while. Te'ijal took the opportunity to grab the pail of water and put out the inflamed curtains. The water did the job, but it was clear to see that the curtains were going to need replacing, seeing as they were covered by holes and scorch marks.

"May I make a request?" Cer'iq asked, pulling away from his father's embrace to look up at both of his parents.

They both nodded their heads, giving him the go-ahead to continue.

"I overheard you talking earlier about training me in magic, and I know that you don't like Uncle Gyendal much, but I can't think of anyone I'd rather have as a magic teacher," he admitted. "I don't believe that Uncle Gyendal is evil either, despite everything that I've heard. He's had plenty of opportunities to get his revenge and try to take over the world again, but he hasn't."

"You are far too smart for your age. Of course, I'd expect nothing less from my son," Te'ijal remarked with a giggle. "I agree with you that my brother has more than proven himself, but your father doesn't seem to realize that."

Galahad sighed, taking a moment to ponder the issue further. "If you both feel so strongly about it, I suppose I have no choice but to allow it," he relented. "However, if you ever find him teaching you something that you don't agree with, or you don't think we'd agree with, you be sure to tell us, all right?"

Cer'iq nodded his head enthusiastically. "Thank you, Papa! I promise I will!"

Rising to his full height, Galahad ran a hand affectionately through his son's hair. "Don't thank me yet, we have yet to even ask him if he would be willing to take you on as his apprentice."

Cer'iq knew that but he didn't care. He was just too happy, his previous sorrows forgotten for the moment. Now that he knew that his father didn't hate him for possessing the gift of magic, he was finally able to let his excitement show. He had always been in awe of mages and the wonderful things they could do, so the thought of being able to do magic himself was thrilling.

"I'll fly over to Velderah and ask him myself," Te'ijal stated as she picked up the now empty pail and started out of the room. "And while I'm out, I might as well try to find you some new curtains."

"Ask Mel where she gets hers," Galahad called out to her. "She tells me that she bought them specifically because they're fireproof."

"Good idea," Te'ijal called back. "We will certainly need them, now that we have a firefly in the house."

Cer'iq groaned. "Not another nickname!"

Te'ijal and Galahad could only laugh.


	20. Chapter 20

It was a quiet night in Velderah as Te'ijal landed firmly on her feet in the midst of the city square. Not a light was to be found, signaling that she was safe to be wandering around without her cloak. Without delay, she started through the city streets, making her way towards the nobles quarter of the city. She couldn't help but let out a small giggle at the fact that Mel was living among the snobby nobles that she had despised for so long. Not only that, but she was now technically one of them. Oh, the fates and their irony!

It didn't take long to find the right house, as it was the very farthest of them all. Not only that, but there was a pink-haired darkling sitting on the roof, keeping watch. It was Mel's personal darkling servant, Yemite, if she recalled correctly. No sooner had the darkling noticed her, she flew down from her perch.

"Ah, Lady Te'ijal! It is good to see you again!" Yemite greeted her excitedly. "Master Gyendal has mentioned you quite frequently as of late. I believe he misses you."

Te'ijal raised a brow at that statement. Her brother missed her? "Somehow I find that hard to believe," she stated. He wouldn't just miss her for no reason. There had to be something more behind it. "Regardless, there is a matter I wish to discuss with him. Is he awake?"

Yemite shrugged. "I am not certain, but I shall go check."

The darkling disappeared into a puff of smoke, leaving Te'ijal standing there in front of the door. She was half-tempted to just let herself in and surprise her brother, but she decided against it as she didn't want to annoy him too much.

After a few moments, Yemite returned. "Master Gyendal will meet you in his study," said the darkling, reaching up to open the door for her. "Come with me."

Te'ijal followed the darkling inside, through the living room and into her brother's study. As always, the walls were lined with rows and rows of books, a collection of his that had been amassed over the centuries. And in the center of the room was a huge mahogany desk with a big chair.

Seeing it, she couldn't resist the urge to make herself at home, sitting down in the chair and kicking her feet up onto his desk. She could see why Gyendal would like it. There was something about a big fancy desk and chair that made a person feel powerful and important.

"Are you purposefully trying to make my life miserable, sister?" Gyendal asked as he stormed into the room dressed in nothing but a red robe, his long black hair messed up from sleeping.

"Well, it seems that somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed," she teased. "Human or Vampire, you're still a grump when you don't get your beauty sleep."

Gyendal rolled his eyes, dismissing Yemite with a wave of his hand as he approached Te'ijal, shoving her feet off his desk. "What do you want? I take it you didn't come just to visit."

"Quick to get to the point, as usual, I see. I always liked that trait about you," she complimented him. "You're right. I've come because I need a favor of you."

"Cease your flattery and spit it out. I want to get back to bed before my daughters decide to wake up and start wreaking havoc again."

Te'ijal let out a sigh. She wasn't entirely sure how he'd react to this, or if he'd even agree in his current mood, but she had to try.

"There was an incident a couple of days ago in Thais. Cer'iq lost control of himself and nearly killed the young prince," she started to explain.

"And how does this concern me?"

"He unintentionally summoned a ring of purple fire in the process."

That certainly woke Gyendal up. His eyes widened, beaming with pride, the same pride he usually reserved towards his own children when they impressed him with their magic.

"He's a dark mage?" he asked with a bit of a chuckle. "I imagine that silly husband of yours must be trying to dig his own grave right about now."

Te'ijal rolled her eyes, ignoring the later remark. "Cer'iq wants _you_ to train him, and is quite excited about the prospect."

Gyendal didn't make any reply at first as he appeared to be deep in thought, mulling things over. He was not one to make decisions lightly. He was always considering the advantages and disadvantages of each situation before he acted. It was part of what made him such a lethal adversary.

"I will agree to take the boy as my apprentice, teach him the basics, as well as some of my own personal tricks. In addition, I will put in a good word for him at Shadwood, so that, when the time comes, he may train at the best school there is."

Te'ijal nodded her head and was about to open her mouth to speak when he cut her off.

"However, I will request a favor from you in return," he added.

She should have known that would be the case. As fond as he was of his nephew, Gyendal was not one to do something simply out of the goodness of his heart … Well, at least not ordinarily.

"And what is it that you desire from me?"

"Immortality."

His reply didn't surprise her in the slightest, having suspected that was what he truly missed. In a way, she missed that too. She missed the good old days when the two of them would race each other across the Wildwoods and back, feeling as if they were on top of the world … Before everything had happened with the Darkthrop Prophecy … Before the infamous stakings that caused him to turn his back on humanity …

She wanted to return to that … But was it possible? By turning him back into a vampire, would she be reawakening the ruthless Lord of Twilight? She didn't want that to happen, yet at the same time, she didn't want to watch him grow old and die either. She didn't quite know what to do.

"I assume you're aware of the impact it would have on those around you."

"I have discussed it with Mel and she understands that I do not wish to remain a human. She is considering joining us when the girls are a bit older," he explained. "And of course, we would have to move, something that we have been thinking about doing anyway. Mel is less than pleased by the … _neighborhood_ …"

She was still a bit reluctant, but upon further consideration, she decided that she might as well agree to it. He had received Mel's approval to do so, keeping in mind the well being of his twin daughters, Uma and Nox. Besides, she knew that he would just go off and find someone else to turn him back if she refused. The least she could do was spare him the shame by agreeing to do it herself. At least this way she would have some control over him as his sire if she felt he stepped out of line.

"Very well then," she relented. Rising from her seat, she stood face to face with him, extending her hand. "I will agree to your terms. Come to Thornkeep in three night's time and I will fulfill my end of the bargain by whichever method you choose."

With a nod of his head, he took her offered hand and shook it, sealing the agreement between them.

Retracting her hand, Te'ijal bid him a good night and turned to take her leave, but stopped as he spoke again.

"Thank you for your cooperation, sister," he took her hand and shook it. "I look forward to regaining the powers I have so missed these past years."

"Perhaps we can race each other through the woods once they return … for old times sake?"

Gyendal smirked, "I would like that. It's been a long time since I've beaten you at something."

She smirked back, "We shall see."

Then she was gone.


	21. Chapter 21

All was quiet in the Royal Palace of Thais. Both the staff and the children had already retired for the night and were fast asleep in their beds, but sleep did not come to the king. Throughout the night he tossed and turned, trying to get comfortable, but alas it was no use. No matter how hard he tried, sleep simply did not come and his mind refused to be silenced.

With a frustrated sigh, Edward pushed back the covers and got up, careful not to wake his sleeping wife. Wrapping his silk robe around him, he made his way over to the window. There was something calming about the night sky to him … something about watching the stars in the sky that helped him feel at peace. It reminded him of the night that Mel discovered his secret … The two of them had been talking out on the balcony while looking up at the darkened sky when all of a sudden they saw the comet and thinking back on it, he realized that was when their adventures truly began.

It seemed like only yesterday that he had been standing on that balcony with Mel, and yet so much time had passed since then. That was a simpler time; a time when he wasn't bearing what felt like the world on his shoulders. Like it or not, he was responsible for the well being of so many people. First and foremost, he was King of Thais, and then on top of that, he was a husband and father to soon to be three. As much as he loved his family as well as his people, he oftentimes felt as though he was in over his head.

For the first time in his life, he could understand why his parents had been so desperate to retire. They had lived with the same burden he was now living with for forty years! He couldn't imagine living like that for so long! Yet, at the same time, he was mindful of his own son, not wishing to push Michael onto the throne any sooner than he had too.

He had to admit that he was conflicted. A part of him had accepted his responsibilities, but there was also still a part of him that longed to escape. He thought about what his life would have been like had he chosen a different path. As his thoughts drifted into possible scenarios, he found himself imagining one scenario that hadn't crossed his mind in a long time … What would have happened if he had run away from Thais with Mel?

There was no doubt in his mind that his life would be very different. He imagined the two of them traveling from place to place, causing mischief wherever they went until the day came that they found a place to settle down. He imagined the two of them on a farm in some far off part of the world, where he could finally live out his dream of being a chicken farmer. A soft chuckle escaped his lips as he imagined Mel with the chickens, running around with them while flapping her arms wildly. That was a sight he would never forget.

He had always liked Mel. What wasn't there to like? Sure, she wasn't the prettiest girl in the world, but she wasn't ugly either. Besides, there was much more to her than looks, which was more than he could say for some other girls. She was fun, with a wicked sense of humor, always finding new ways to cause mischief and panic. And the thing that he liked about her the most was that she was completely and utterly free, not just physically but mentally. Half the world hated her because she was the Darkthrop Heir, but she didn't care about that. She didn't care about anything. She just lived her life the way she wanted and he envied her for that.

"Edward?" he heard Stella call out.

Glancing back, he faintly saw the figure of his wife sitting up in bed. "Over by the window," he reassured her.

Her voice snapped him from his train of thoughts, bringing him back to reality. Of course, he didn't regret marrying Stella. She was the love of his life, and he couldn't think of a better person to help him rule the kingdom.

Getting up, Stella lit a lamp, filling the room with a warm golden glow, before going over to join her husband.

"What is troubling you, darling?" she asked, wrapping her arms around him from behind, the bulge in her stomach squishing against his back.

Edward did not reply at first. He didn't want to burden her any more than necessary. The stress of having to run a kingdom as well as take care of their children was already getting to her, and it wasn't good for her. He had been trying to lessen her burden by taking it upon himself ever since he found out that she was pregnant again, but there was only so much he could do.

"Does it involve the incident with Cer'iq?"

He let out a sigh. She always was good at sensing things, especially when it involved people's emotions. Stella was just like that. She had a heart of gold, always wanting to help people feel better.

"Do you think it was wrong of me to banish them from Thais?" he asked.

"Well, I'm not exactly pleased with your decision, but I do understand it," she replied. "You weren't the only one frightened by it. I love Te'ijal and Galahad's son dearly, but seeing him inches away from Michael's throat … Let's just say it brought back some unpleasant memories."

He knew exactly what she was talking about without going into detail. It reminded her of when she was being chased by Gyendal and his thugs. Hearing that she shared in his fears gave him the courage to open up and share more with her.

"When I came upon the scene, it was as if time had somehow rewound itself. I didn't see the adorable blonde-haired boy … I saw _him_ … I saw Gyendal …"

Unwrapping her arms from around him, she turned him around to face her. "It was just an illusion."

Edward wanted to agree with her … He really did … But he couldn't. He couldn't believe that because of something he had long suspected but never dared to speak aloud. Now that he was being open about the topic, he couldn't bring himself to keep it in any longer.

"Was it really?" he argued. "What if it was more than that?"

"What do you mean?"

"Michael told me what it was they were arguing about before Cer'iq attacked him. He says that Cer'iq was defending his uncle," he explained. "Doesn't it strike you as odd that a little boy who has supposedly never met his uncle, and has most likely heard countless stories about the horrible things he did, would be defending him?"

Stella stopped to ponder it for a few moments. "When you put it that way, I suppose it does sound a bit suspicious," she admitted, "but I'm sure it's nothing. He probably just didn't want to believe that someone in his own family could be evil."

"Either that or someone isn't telling us everything."

Stella let out a sharp gasp at her husband's admission. "You think Te'ijal and Galahad are lying to us?"

"I don't know for sure. I hope that I'm wrong, but I get the feeling that Te'ijal, in particular, knows more than she's letting on."

They both recalled what had happened before Gyendal vanished into thin air. It was back in Underfall, while Galahad had gone off to the Demon Realm to save Mel. To that day, neither of them knew what had been said between the two siblings. The only thing they knew was that he had dragged her out of the dungeon, supposedly to his chambers. The next time they saw her, they seemed as though they were as close as ever. She even went so far as to defend him when Mel tried to throw him in the dungeon.

"And of course, it doesn't help matters that Cer'iq turns out to be a dark mage, just like him."

The evidence was convincing, but still, Stella refused to believe it. "He made a mistake, Edward. I'm sure it has nothing to do with his uncle. Besides, just because he's a dark mage doesn't mean that he's evil. I think that is something that we should remind our children of. Michael said some pretty awful things."

Edward relented, nodding his head in understanding. She did make a good point. Mel was a dark mage, as was her husband Lars and their daughter Nox. None of them were evil. Perhaps a bit chaotic and mischievous at times, but definitely not evil.

"You're right. I'm sorry for troubling you with my paranoia," he apologized. "I'll make an effort to explain that to the children, and I'll write a letter to Te'ijal and Galahad, apologizing for my behavior and assuring them that they are still welcome to visit, so long as they take precautions to ensure such an incident doesn't happen again."

Stella smiled as she leaned up and pressed a kiss to his lips. "I accept your apology. Now, shall we go back to bed?"

Edward nodded and let her lead him over to the king-sized canopy bed. For her sake, he would try to ignore the bad feeling he had. He only hoped that she was right … Though that didn't exactly fill him with peace of mind either. Even if he wasn't in contact with his sister and nephew, Gyendal was still out there somewhere, biding his time for the opportune moment to return, and when that happened, there was no doubt in his mind that he'd go after Mel again to get revenge. He swore to himself at that moment that he wouldn't let Gyendal get to her again.


	22. Chapter 22

Lydia Rupert had always been known for her vanity. In the past she would find pleasure from gazing upon herself in the mirror. People far and wide could agree that she was indeed beautiful, perhaps even the most beautiful in all of Aia, or at least in all of Thais. She liked to think so anyway.

Now the once proud and beautiful queen fled from her reflection like the plague. After nearly twelve years rotting in a dungeon, with little food and only a lump of straw to sleep on, it was no surprise that life had taken its toll on her appearance. Her once elegantly styled hair was now overgrown, matted and quite possibly even infested with lice. Her lavish ball gowns had been traded for the smelly old rags she was forced to wear. For what might be the first time in her life, she actually thought herself ugly.

"Out of my way, puny slave girl!" roared an Orc Guard, as he kicked her in the rear with his huge metal boot.

Lydia let out a startled cry as she lost her balance, falling flat on her face, the floor hard and wet from the mopping she had just done.

The Orc Guard let out a full bellied laugh at her agony, splashing her further as he stomped past her and went on his way.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she picked herself up off the floor, and grabbing her broom, broke out into a run. Dashing down the long hallway of the palace, she ran straight into the slave quarters. Once there, she collapsed onto her bed of straw and let out every ounce of pain and sorrow. She was soon sobbing hysterically.

She had once thought that being stuck in a cave in the middle of a blizzard was bad, but her new life in the Orc Empire put that memory to shame. The Orc Empire put everything to shame. In her grief, she cursed _him_ to the other end of Aia and back. Everything was _his_ fault! It was none other than Edward Pendragon who gave the order for her to be given into the hands of the Orcs.

She had thought many things about her ex-husband. Weak … Reckless … Childish … Those were only some of the words she used to describe him, but she had never thought him to be so utterly cruel. That was the only word she could think of to describe him now. She didn't deserve any of this, at least she didn't think so. So what she had stolen the throne from him? Edward should have been grateful for what she had done. After all the times he had complained about not wanting to take the throne, she had thought that he might appreciate her trick a bit more. He would have been free to go off and live the life he wanted, allowing her to rule alone as she wanted. It suited both of their desires, or so she thought. Apparently she had been mistaken.

"One day, I will have my revenge on you, Edward Pendragon!" she declared, not caring if anyone heard her or thought her crazy. She knew that she was crazy. The Orcs had made her that way. "I don't know how, but mark my words! I'll find a way to escape from here, and when I do, you better watch out!"

Feeling drained and sore from the events of that day, she ended up crying herself to sleep that night, her mind filled with thoughts of how she would obtain her revenge if she ever saw Edward again.

Not too long after she had closed her eyes, she felt something begin to tug at her. It was magic. She knew that much without even second guessing herself. It had been a long time since she had been able to use her own magic, for the ugly metal band tightly clamped around her wrist prevented her from doing so, but she could still sense when magic was nearby, an ability she was relieved to still possess.

The tugging sensation got stronger and stronger until she felt as though she was being sucked in by something, and perhaps she was. She didn't really know what was happening to her. Although she tried to open her eyes, she found that she was unable to. In fact, she couldn't move at all. It was almost as if her entire body had been stunned. She couldn't feel anything. Not the prickly straw that served as her bed, nor did she feel the grimy rags that covered her body. She couldn't even speak.

Then, everything came back to her. She opened her eyes and stood up, finding herself no longer in the Orc's Slave Quarters, but rather in a land unlike anything she had ever seen before. The grass beneath her was purple, as were the trees surrounding her. For a brief moment, she thought she was back in Ghed'ahre, the land of the Vampires, remembering that the grass and trees there were a similar shade, but then she saw it and she knew that wherever she was, it most certainly wasn't Ghed'ahre.

Standing before her was a unicorn with a coat as white as snow and a horn that sparkled as if it were made up of pure diamonds. She remembered that as a child, her nanny had often told her stories of the fabled creatures and their unearthly beauty. She knew that they were a rare species, only inhabiting a few select places, the Dream Realm being one of them.

"Is this a dream?"

Getting to her feet, she started towards the unicorn, her hand reached out with the intention of petting the beautiful creature. Alas, as she got closer, the Unicorn became frightened and galloped away, leaving Lydia standing there all alone.

"Hmph! Stupid Unicorn!" She exclaimed, sticking her nose up at it's retreating form.

A part of her hated the unicorn for running away, but at the same time a part of her didn't blame it. A creature as beautiful as a unicorn was bound to be frightened by someone as hideous as her.

"If only I could steal some of it's beauty for myself," she muttered.

"Perhaps I can help you with that," replied an unfamiliar voice.

Old instincts kicked in when she heard that. With hands up in a defensive position, she was ready to defend herself should anyone jump out at her… but then she remembered that she couldn't actually use her magic, and instead reached down to pick up a rock. She felt pathetic and useless, but she wasn't about to go down without a fight.

"Show yourself!" she demanded. "I demand to know who's there!"

She nearly jumped right out of her skin when she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. Letting out a startled shriek, she spun around, ready to throw the rock at whoever it was, but stopped short as she got a good look at him.

Her jaw dropped wide open, and with it the rock in her hand, landing on the ground with a soft thud.

If she thought the unicorn was beautiful, she was sorely mistaken. For the man that stood before her now made the unicorn look hideous in comparison. He looked like a god… He had long white hair that seemed to sparkle much like the unicorn's horn and skin that was pale and without blemish. But the most startling thing about his appearance was his eyes; bright green orbs that pierced through your very soul. He was the very definition of perfection.

"Forgive me for startling you. I'm afraid I might have startled your unicorn friend as well," he apologized.

"A-Are you a … a vampire?" She asked, finding herself struggling to form words in his presence.

The man raised a single arched brow at that. "A vampire? If I am, I certainly don't look like one."

"That doesn't mean anything," she retorted. "I know one who has managed to retain his human appearance by refusing to drink blood."

"I have heard tales of such a being. Regardless, I assure you that I am not one of the undead, though just as powerful, perhaps even more so, if I might add."

He wasn't kidding. She could sense the immense power radiating from him. He possessed strong magic indeed, but not like anything she had ever sensed before. The closest match she could think of was Gyendal.

"Who are you? And why am I here?"

He nodded his head, bowing chivalrous to her. "I am Caius and I have summoned you here because I heard your plea for help."

"I don't recall pleading for help," she insisted, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"You wish to seek revenge on those who have wronged you. You wish to reclaim the beauty and power that was so unjustly stolen from you. I can help you achieve your goals, if you will let me."

"How? How can you possibly help me? Even if you were to free me from the Orcs, I am pretty sure it would take nothing short of a miracle to restore my looks."

"It is not so hard," Caius claimed.

Reaching out his hands, they began to glow with magic. She saw his lips move but heard no words come out. Before she fully knew what was happening, she felt a jolt course through her body, followed by a loud crack. It took her a few moments to figure out what was going on, but then she noticed how bare her wrist felt. The anti-magic bracelet had fallen off, and now laid at her feet, broken and singed.

"Now that you have your magic back, you should have no problem reclaiming the beauty you so desire."

She was just about to question him when she noticed that the Unicorn she saw earlier had returned. It moved towards them as if not by it's own will. She sensed Caius' magic coursing through the creature. Somehow he was controlling it. She finally understood why the unicorn was frightened earlier. It wasn't frightened by her, but by the power this one man had over it.

"You see, there is a way to steal the unicorn's beauty for yourself," Caius explained. "If your desire for beauty is strong enough, that is."

Lydia didn't waste any time thinking about what it might all entail. "It is. Just tell me what I must do."

Caius smirked, willing the unicorn to lay down before their feet. "Close your eyes and think about the unicorn. Imagine the unicorn morphing into you, replacing everything you hate about yourself with everything you wish you had from the unicorn."

She nodded and closed her eyes, following his directions without hesitation. Eventually she began to feel something happening. She felt a huge burst of energy enter her, making her feel more powerful than she had ever felt before. She felt a change take place in her body. It was changing shape. Every now and then she felt a twinge of pain, but nothing she couldn't bear.

Eventually the changing stopped and she opened her eyes again, met with the sight of the creature that lay lifeless at her feet. What was once a beautiful unicorn was now nothing but an ugly, shrivelled up corpse. She briefly felt bad for having caused the creature to die, but it was short lived as she thought of her own appearance.

"Did it work?" She asked, turning back towards Caius. "Am I beautiful again?"

"See for yourself," he said. Conjuring up a dainty hand mirror, he handed it over to her.

The reflection she saw made her gasp. Not only had it restored her to her former beauty but it had made her even more beautiful than ever. Her hair was still long, but was combed and well kept, not a tangle to be found. Every scratch and scar on her skin had healed. Much like his own skin, it was completely without blemish. Her teeth were pearly white and her nails were clean. And most importantly, her rags were gone, replaced by a beautiful black gown similar to the one she used to wear.

"Now that I've proven to you that I can help, perhaps you will be willing to hear my proposition?"

She pondered it for a moment. Caius certainly had proven himself. He was powerful; a beneficial ally to have on one's side. She got the feeling that he could do so much more, and she was eager to see and learn some of these things.

"I'm listening."

"I will help you reclaim your throne, delivering its current king and queen into your hands for you to do as you wish with them, and in return, you will help me achieve my ultimate goal," he proposed.

"Let me guess, you want to take over the world?"

"Not exactly," Caius chuckled. "Let's just say that you're not the only one who lost their kingdom."

That sounded fair to her. A kingdom for a kingdom. Besides, it might be in her own best interest. An alliance between two powerful kingdoms would add some extra security in case anyone ever tried to overthrow her again. She wasn't about to let that happen again.

"I will accept your terms, so long as you promise never to go against me when we both have our kingdoms restored to us."

Caius smirked, nodding his head. "The same goes for you."

"Good. Now get me away from the Orc Kingdom."

"With pleasure, your soon-to-be majesty."


	23. Chapter 23

The tension in the Ravenfoot-Teomes House felt so strong that it was almost unbearable to be inside. Te'ijal and Galahad were having one of their lengthier spats. Galahad hadn't spoken to Te'ijal in days, going out of his way to ignore her whenever she tried to address him. He would still talk to Cer'iq, but never Te'ijal.

As you can imagine, it was starting to get worrisome to Cer'iq. Over the last few days, he had been attempting to spend as much time as he could outside, but there was only so much time you could spend playing in the snow, even for half-vampire mage with an abundance of imagination. He still had to eat and sleep, things that required him to enter the house for.

Peeking his head through the door, Cer'iq stopped for a moment to try and detect where his parents were. He could hear the faint sound of book pages turning coming from the living room, leading him to believe that was where his father was. He didn't hear or sense his mother anywhere.

With that, he determined it was safe and slipped inside, shutting the door behind him as he kicked his snowy boots off and started towards the kitchen. Their kitchen was quite small compared to your average kitchen, but considering it was used by a family of vampires, out of which only one member ate actual food, it suited them well enough.

Cer'iq got to work as soon as he reached his destination. Pulling open the cupboards, he grabbed a loaf of bread and a jar of fruit preserve, laying it out on the counter-top to prepare what he wanted for lunch; a fruit sandwich, which just so happened to be one of his favorites. Everything tasted better with fruit in Cer'iq's mind … Well, almost everything. He had tried adding fruit preserve to his vegetables once. He shuddered at the mere memory.

Once his jam sandwich was completed, he cleaned up the remaining bread and fruit preserve like his mother and father had taught him to do before finally seating himself at the table and sinking his teeth in.

Unfortunately, he had only gotten two bites in before he heard voices coming from the living room.

"This act of yours is getting out of hand, Crumpet," he heard his mother say. "How much longer do you intend to ignore me?"

No reply came for the first couple of minutes, not until the sound of a book slamming shut sounded.

"Give me back my book!" his father exclaimed.

"Not until you tell me what is wrong," Te'ijal insisted. "What is it that has you so deliciously angry with me?"

Cer'iq tried to focus on eating his sandwich and drown the voices out, even going so far as to clamp his hands over his ears, but it was no use in the end. He cursed his ears for being able to hear so well. If only he had been born with human ears. Then he wouldn't be having this problem, or so he thought.

"Do you honestly think that I like living next across the street from your brother?" Galahad asked.

"We shared a house with him in Ghed'ahre for three-hundred-years," Te'ijal replied. "How is this any different? If anything, I think it's better. We don't have to worry about cleaning up after him anymore. He now has a wife to pick up his underpants for him."

Cer'iq found the remark about Uncle Gyendal's underpants to be quite amusing, but apparently his father did not.

"You know what I mean! Did you honestly think I would be alright with the fact that you just up and decided to turn him back into a vampire without even consulting me?"

"Look Crumpet, I know that the two of you don't get along, but he is my brother and I cannot bear the thought of losing him. Even if he hadn't asked me to do it, I probably still would have turned him. You of all people should know how I feel about letting those I care about die."

"So you would have turned him against his own will, just like you did with me?!" Galahad roared. "And to think that I believed you might have changed since. You're still the same Demon Spawn that you always were."

Cer'iq froze in his seat, the sandwich in his hand slipping out of his grasp and falling onto the table. He had heard his parents call each other many _interesting_ things over the years. ' _Crumpet'_ and ' _Lamb'_ were usually his mother's go-to terms of endearment, while his father usually preferred to stick with ' _Wife'_ or, if he was feeling particularly affectionate, he would call her ' _My Love'_. This was definitely a name he had never heard either of them use before.

 _Demon Spawn_ … The name echoed over and over inside his head. He wasn't stupid by any means necessary. Most people told him he was too smart for his age. He knew that this wasn't a good name to call someone. In fact, it was a horrible name. He had heard enough stories of his parents adventures to know that demons were evil. His father had told him so himself. To hear that his father had basically just called his mother a demon … It hurt him to put it mildly.

Unable to bear being in the house for a moment longer, Cer'iq sprang into action, jumping from his seat and breaking out into a run at vampiric speed. All he knew was that he had to get away from the house for a while, as well as his father.

"Cer'iq!"

"Cer'iq, wait!"

He heard his parents call after him, but he just kept on running.

They were fast catching up with him, but he managed to make it back to the door, yanking it open so hard that he nearly ripped it off its hinges. Unfortunately, in his urgency to get out, he failed to take notice of the mailman on the other side of the door, that is until he smacked right into him, causing the two of them to collapse to the ground.

"Woah there!" exclaimed the mailman. "What's the rush, lad? Is there a fire somewhere?"

Seeing the very-much-human mailman, Te'ijal quickly ducked behind the door to avoid being seen. Such was the routine whenever unfamiliar humans entered the snow covered village. Not many humans dared to venture so far north, but there were a couple who stopped by from time to time; a mailman and a travelling merchant.

"Are you alright?" Galahad asked, helping both back to their feet. "I'm sorry my son ran into you. He was in a hurry to go play with his cousins."

Cer'iq glared at his father, silently communicating, _"That's not true and you know it!"_

The mailman waved it off. "Don't worry. It happens all the time." Reaching into his mail bag, he pulled out a creamy white envelope, handing it to Galahad. "I've got a letter here for you all the way from Thais."

"Thank you."

And with his job done, the mailman took his leave.

The letter managed to grab Cer'iq's attention, allowing him to temporarily forget about his earlier escape attempt. Glancing over at his father, he watched as he pried open the all too familiar Pendragon seal and began to read what was written inside.

"What does it say, Crumpet?" Te'ijal asked, coming out of her hiding place.

Cer'iq was wondering the same thing. Why would the Pendragon's be sending them a letter? Especially after what had happened only a few weeks ago. The slight reddish tint in his eyes still served as proof of the crime he had nearly committed.

"It's from Edward. He apologizes for overreacting and welcomes us back…" he broke off as he continued reading. A few moments later, his eyes widened dramatically. "Thais is under attack! He has requested for us to come and help him defend the city from the army of monsters that is slowly closing in on them!"

Tearing the letter from her husband's grasp, Te'ijal quickly skimmed through it before ripping it in half.

"What did you do that for?!"

"Why should we help them? Edward made it very clear that he didn't want us around. He's a fool if he thinks he can treat us like that and then expect us to come running to his aid at the first sign of trouble," Te'ijal argued.

Galahad opened his mouth to argue, but was cut off.

"I couldn't agree with you more, dear sister," Gyendal added, coming up to them with Mel close behind. "Let the humans fight their own battles."

"I see you received a letter as well," Te'ijal pointed out, eyes trained on the identical letter in Mel's hand.

Mel nodded. "I imagine mine was a bit different from yours, without the apology. Edward explained a bit more of the situation. Apparently a hoard of monsters just showed up out of nowhere. And they're not your average monsters. They're about ten times stronger, and have already taken the lives of at least a dozen helpless citizens."

Cer'iq stepped away from the arguing adults, going to meet his twin cousins who had wandered out after their parents. They were a bit younger than him, only five years old, but they were fun to play with. The three of them had grown considerably close, especially in the last few days since they had moved to Thornkeep. They had served as a distraction from the chaos at home. Unfortunately, it seemed that the chaos was being spread to their parents as well.

"We cannot ignore his plea for help simply because of a disagreement," Galahad insisted.

"Then explain why you've been ignoring me for the past days?" Te'ijal retorted.

Galahad faltered for a moment, but not long enough to be swayed. "That is a completely different issue and off topic. This is about Edward and his kingdom, not the two of us."

Cer'iq let out a sigh, shaking his head. He was starting to wonder if they would ever stop arguing.

"I know Edward can be annoying at times, but he's still our friend, and if you won't do it for his sake, then at least do it his ancestor's," Mel reasoned. "Didn't you make a promise to Rhen or something, to look out for her descendants?"

Te'ijal groaned, running a hand down her face. "I'm starting to regret ever making that promise," she muttered. After a few more moments, she finally gave in. "Fine, but what are we supposed to do with the children? Surely Edward doesn't expect us to just bring them along."

Cer'iq turned to look at both of his cousins. His mother was right. They weren't prepared to face such a battle. Uma and Nox were far too young to fight, and none of them were fully trained in magic yet. He had only just begun to learn how to control his own magic. Besides, he wasn't sure if he wanted to go back to Thais. He wasn't ready to face them yet, though he wasn't sure if he'd ever be ready.

"We could leave them with the Oracle in Aveyond," Galahad suggested. "They would be safe there."

Gyendal scoffed. "Do you honestly expect a senile old woman to take care of three of the most powerful children in the world? Aveyond would be nothing but ashes by the time you returned."

"Do you have a better idea?"

"As a matter of fact, I do," Gyendal insisted. "You can leave them with me. I am probably the only one capable of keeping them under control as well as safe."

Mel turned to him in surprise. "You're not coming with us?"

Gyendal shook his head. "I am no hero, lamb, nor do I desire to be one. And besides, my disguise as Lars VIII no longer works. I am a vampire now. There would be too many questions asked."

Galahad looked as if he was about to protest, but Te'ijal didn't let him. "Then it is settled. We shall go and save the day while Gyendal looks after the children. He can portal directly to us or to Aveyond if something unforeseen happens."

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement, though a bit begrudgingly on Galahad's part.

The group separated temporarily, heading back to their respective homes to prepare before meeting up again at the edge of the village. When they returned, they were all decked out in their battle gear; Galahad in his full armor, Te'ijal with her bow and quiver of arrows, and Mel with her staff. They were ready to go.

Cer'iq managed to hug his mother goodbye, but merely waved and returned to his uncle and cousins' sides when it came to saying goodbye to his father. Galahad gave his son a sad look, making Cer'iq feel a bit guilty, but he was soon distracted as he was tasked with keeping his fair-haired cousin under control. Uma wasn't too happy about her mother leaving and started crying and screaming for her not to go.

"We shouldn't be gone for too long," Mel said as she gave her husband a quick peck on the lips.

"Stay safe, lamb."

And then, with a final glance back at the children, Mel summoned a portal, a skill she had learned from Gyendal, and then they were gone.


	24. Chapter 24

Stepping through the portal, Te'ijal and Galahad felt as if they had been transported back in time to the days of their adventures with Rhen. They could hardly believe their eyes. Thais was once more in ruins. It's outer wall was in shambles. Whole buildings were consumed by flames, filling the air with heavy smoke.

Breaking out into a coughing fit, Mel clamped a hand over her mouth. "We need to head to the castle!"

Galahad nodded in agreement. "You're right, we must ensure that the Pendragon's are safe."

It wasn't hard for them to find their way with a couple of pairs of enhanced eyes leading the way, but it took longer than hoped as they kept getting delayed by monsters blocking their path or innocent civilians who needed saving.

Te'ijal had to suppress the urge to roll her eyes. Of course, Galahad could never resist defending the helpless. This was one of the many times in which she wished her husband was a bit more selfish. Still she came to his aid when he needed it, fighting off monsters who attempted to ambush him from behind.

As reported, these monsters were a lot stronger than normal. It took their combined strength to defeat them.

"There's something unnatural about them," Mel remarked. "I can sense dark magic coming from them. They're being controlled."

Though not a mage herself, Te'ijal had spent enough time in the company of mages to be able to sense such a thing.

"It's not Gyendal's magic, is it?"

"No, I would recognize his magic anywhere," Mel glared at the blonde knight. "This is the work of someone else."

"A new foe?" Te'ijal asked. "It's been a while since we've encountered one of those."

Eventually they made it to the castle gates, which had been blasted open with a fallen guard laying off to the side. Galahad tried to stop to help him, but Te'ijal grabbed him by the neck and pulled him along.

It was unsettling to find the castle, once heavily guarded, now completely unguarded. Fearing for the worst, they hurried inside, scouring every inch of the castle in search of their friends.

Much to their relief, they soon found the royal family safely gathered in their private chambers. Stella was huddled on the bed, hugging her children tightly to her, while Edward stood before them with sword in hand.

"Oh, thank the Goddess you made it!" Edward exclaimed, rushing forward to hug Mel.

"It's good to see you all," Galahad said. "With the current state of the city, we had begun to think we were too late."

Pulling away from the hug, which incidentally Mel was trying to wriggle out of, Edward sheathed his sword and turned to address the vampires. "Thank you for coming, despite everything that has happened. We still aren't quite sure how it all happened. We just woke up this morning and found an army of monsters swarming in on us. They've already defeated a large portion of our military."

They all nodded their heads in understanding, having already figured out as much on their own. Mel informed them of what they had discovered during their trip through the city, and how the beasts were under someone's control and that they were unable to identify the master.

Edward glanced back at his family before turning back to focus on his friends. "Tell me, do you think we can stop this invasion?"

To be honest, they really had no clue as to what the outcome might be. However, Te'ijal knew that Galahad wasn't going to just give up, and she didn't exactly want Thais to be completely destroyed either. Rhen would come out of her grave and haunt her if she let that happen. Besides, Thais held a special place in her heart. Even if the building itself was long gone, it was still the city where her and Galahad were wed.

"We've saved the world on more than one occasion. I'm sure that we can do it again," Galahad declared like the noble knight he was.

"Very well then, we shall join forces and gather any and all men still standing," Edward agreed. "However, I'm not making the same mistake my ancestors did. If I'm going out to fight, I'm not leaving my family behind unprotected."

There were no questions asked as to what he meant by that. Everyone knew the story of the unfortunate demise of Queen Alicia Pendragon.

"I can conjure a portal to take them to Aveyond and then come back," Mel offered.

Edward didn't reply at first as he pondered over the idea. "Would you be alright with this?"

Stella nodded her head. "As much as I would like to stay and help, I have to consider the children and their safety. Aveyond is the safest place for us right now. No evil can touch us there."

And so it was decided.

Getting up off of the bed, Stella quickly packed a bag full of things that they might need and gathered their cloaks for the journey.

Meanwhile, Edward readied himself for battle, donning his royal armor and legendary sword, Excalibur with determination. No longer the reluctant prince he once had been, he was more than ready to defend what was left of his city.

Once everyone was finished preparing, it was time for goodbyes. Kneeling down before his children, Edward pulled them into an embrace.

"I'm counting on you two to take care of your mother in my absence," he told them. "Can you do that for me?"

They nodded their heads in unison. You could tell that the young prince and princess were trying to be strong, but deep down they were frightened.

Edward then turned to his wife, reaching out to press a kiss to her lips. He could taste the salty tears streaming down her face.

"Come back to us, Edward."

"I'll do my best."

With everyone ready, Mel summoned a portal, ushering Stella and the children through first. She cast a brief glance back at her remaining friends. "I'll meet up with you as soon as I know they're safe."

No sooner had she followed them through then the portal disappeared and the group of three promptly made their way out of the castle and into the city.

Those living near the wall had been hit the most, with its houses and shops blasted apart. Only a few of the rentals were left standing, and even then they were hardly in stable condition. It was a sad state. Monsters were prowling the streets with blood soaked paws, the citizens of Thais running for their lives.

They helped as many as they could, fighting their way through Lamplight District, past the School of War and Magic and up into the Nobles District.

It didn't take long for them to realize that the nobles district wasn't being targeted like the rest of the city was. There was only one house that was in bad condition and that was Harpsbren Manor. Edward wasn't overly alarmed by that, knowing that the owner was never home to begin with. However, the visible lack of damage or monsters in the area did alarm him.

Something wasn't right.

An eerie silence hung in the air as they made their way further into the district. Every now and then they caught a glimpse of faces peeking out from the curtains, their eyes following the warriors as they went.

"I think it's safe to say that the perpetrator is in our midst," Te'ijal stated.

Te'ijal reached out to grab Galahad's arm and pull him back, but he was too stubborn and refused to move.

They all stopped dead in their tracks as the sound of laughter filled the air.

"Show yourself!"

In a flash of light, two figures appeared before them, both dressed in black cloaks that hid their faces from view. The amount of raw power emanating from them was overwhelming as it filled the air, creating a barrier around them.

They were trapped…

"So, these are the heroes I've heard so much about?" Said the male figure. "The ones who defeated Mordred Darkthrop?"

The female nodded her head but didn't say a word.

"And the legendary vampires who fought against Ahriman and his demons so many years ago. What an honour it is to finally meet you all."

"You clearly know us, and yet we don't know you," Te'ijal noted.

Pulling his hood back, they were taken back by what they saw. Not because they recognized him but because he shone like a god.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Edward demanded. "What have I done to you that you should attack my city?!"

"To me, nothing, but to my partner… Well, I believe you already know of the crimes you committed against her."

Edward opened his mouth to question him, but stopped as the female pulled back her hood as well, revealing a face that he knew all too well. It was a face they all knew.

"Lydia!?"

They couldn't believe their eyes. The last time they had seen the conniving mage was right before she was dragged away to the Orc Kingdom. Though, looking at her now, you would never guess that she had spent the last twelve years as a slave to the Orc King. She looked like a goddess, unnaturally beautiful like her companion.

Her brown eyes glared icily into those of her ex-husband. "How _good_ to see you again, Edward."

"H-How?" Edward stammered, his face draining of blood.

"Unlike you, Caius had mercy on me and helped me escape… And now, you shall get a taste of your own medicine. You too will know what it's like to be treated as a slave!"

With a shaky hand, Edward raised his sword and began to charge towards them, followed soon after by Galahad and Te'ijal. Unfortunately, they didn't get far before a pack of wolves came out of nowhere, and with a wave of the hand from the man, Caius, the wolves pounced on them, pinning them down to the ground.

Though they fought to get free, the wolves were too strong, even for the two immortals.

Ignoring the king, Caius went straight over to the vampire couple. "Forgive me, for my fight is not with you, but I am afraid I cannot allow you to interfere."

Waving his hands over them, he cast a dark spell that quickly engulfed their bodies.

Edward was left to watch in horror as his friends, the two people he had thought invincible, were drained, their eyes slowly fluttering closed.

"No… C-Cer'iq…" were the last words to come from Galahad's mouth before he lost consciousness along with his wife.

As their bodies relaxed, the wolves backed away at their master's silent command, retreating the way they had come.

"What did you do to them!?"

Stepping away from the unconscious vampires, Caius turned his attention back to the king. "If I were you, I'd be worrying more about myself and less about your friends, for now it is your turn."

"Make sure he doesn't remember anything of the last thirteen years or so. He must believe that he is still married to me."

Caius smirked, "As you wish."

Hearing those words, Edward began to fight like never before as he felt his memories being sucked out of him. He clung tightly to the images of his wife and children as if his life depended on it, but it was no use. He could not fight the spell.

The last thought to enter his mind was the dreadful fate he would awaken to. If he had thought that being married to Lydia was horrible years ago, he could only imagine what it would be like for him now. It sounded like a living nightmare.

"Stella… Forgive me."

Then he was gone...

"It is done, my queen," Caius said, turning back to the green haired mage. "My end of the bargain has been fulfilled."

Lydia smirked. "Indeed you have, and now it is time for you to take back your own kingdom."

"It will take time to recover what I lost, but you may be assured that I will call upon you when I am in need of your assistance."

Breaking out into laughter, they levitated the sleeping bodies and went on their way. Lydia took Edward and headed towards the castle while Caius took Te'ijal and Galahad, vanishing into thin air with them.

Unbeknownst to any of them, Mel had been watching from the shadows all along. As soon as she was sure that they were gone, Mel crept out of her hiding place.

"This is not good…"


	25. Chapter 25

The hours after his parents left were some of the longest Cer'iq had ever experienced. Seated in front of the window in the living room of his aunt and uncle's house, his eyes trained on the village square, waiting for the first glimpse of his mother's wild red hair and his father's shining armor.

"Watching for them isn't going to make them return any sooner," Gyendal pointed out, coming up behind him with a mug of tea in hand.

Cer'iq nodded his head but said nothing.

Gyendal sighed and sat down next to him. "So, are you going to tell me why you are angry at your father? What did the fool do this time?"

Cer'iq hesitated. He was tempted to tell his uncle about it, but a part of him was reluctant to do so. Uncle Gyendal had never really gotten along with his father that great. He wasn't sure why, but there had always been this mutual hostility between them. As far as he could figure, it had something to do with how Uncle Gyendal tried to take over the world.

Yet, as reluctant as he was, he was still tempted. There were a few unanswered questions in his head that needed answering. Maybe his wise uncle would know the answers.

Prying his eyes away from the window, he sat down on the couch next to his uncle.

"He and mother were arguing… about you… Mother said something about how she probably would have turned you even if you hadn't asked and then Father called her something… Demon Spawn…"

His uncle didn't seem surprised or repulsed by what he had just said in the slightest, or if he did, he certainly didn't show it.

"So, he's back to calling her that again."

Cer'iq looked up at him in confusion. He was back to calling her that again? What did he mean by that?

"I suppose your parents never told you this, but they didn't always get along," the older vampire began to explain. "In fact, your father downright hated your mother when they were first married."

"Was it because she bit him on their wedding day?"

At that, Gyendal couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle. "That and because she stole his soul, using it as bait to trick him into marrying her."

The young half-vampire's eyes widened. This was news to him. His parents had never told him any of this.

As he thought about it, he recalled a conversation they had years earlier, right before Uncle Gyendal and Aunt Mel's wedding. Something about a shop where his mother had purchased a pendant that could steal souls. His father hadn't seemed too happy at the mention, but forgave his mother quickly enough. At the time, he hadn't been paying much attention to them, as he was focused on finding his friends.

"Your father was ungrateful and despised the gift of vampirism that had been given to him. He longed to be human, and tried many times to end his own cursed life. Of course, it never worked," Gyendal continued. "My sister is nothing if not persistent. She waited three-hundred years for the fool to love her back, and in the end he finally did, only after a near death encounter."

To say that Cer'iq was shocked was an understatement. He didn't know what to say to that. He knew about the near death encounter and everything that came after that, but he never knew about the three-hundred years that came before. Though, he understood why his parents hadn't told him. They probably thought he wouldn't understand, or just didn't know how to tell him. It certainly seemed like a difficult story to tell.

"But isn't it still mean to call mother a demon spawn?"

"Not really. She has a tendency of treating his insults as if he was flirting with her. I wouldn't take it too seriously if I were you."

Cer'iq laughed. That definitely sounded like something his mother would do. "We Ravenfoots have our own way of doing things," he quoted his mother.

"Indeed we do."

They sat and talked for a while longer about various things, though the primary topic was obviously magic; the very thing that bonded the uncle and nephew together. Cer'iq hung on his uncle's every word, fascinated by the depth of his knowledge. In fact, they were both so focused on their conversation that they didn't even notice Mel coming up the path to the house.

The sound of the front door opening finally alerted them of her return. Getting up off the couch, they hurried to go meet her. Uma and Nox must have heard her too as they came running down the stairs.

"Welcome back, Aunt Mel," Cer'iq greeted her with a smile. "Where are my parents? Did they go back to our house?"

Mel didn't smile back, nor did she reply to his questions. She just stood there staring off into the distance with a haunted look in her eyes.

Gyendal wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close to him. "What is it, Lamb?"

It took her awhile before she finally opened her mouth to speak.

She explained everything that had happened while they were in Thais. How Lydia and a powerful dark mage by the name of Caius had been behind the attack and how the group had been ambushed. Somehow this mage had stolen their memories, an ability that was extremely rare in this time and age, before promptly vanishing into thin air with the two vampires.

"I returned to Aveyond, but even she doesn't know where they are! She tried to look into their futures, but she couldn't see anything. She said it was nothing but a blur."

His aunt and uncle continued to talk, but by then he had stopped listening.

The realization that his parents were missing was swift and brutal, and felt like a dagger to the chest. His face paled dramatically and his body began to tremble uncontrollably. For he knew what it meant if the Oracle couldn't see their futures… It meant that they didn't have a future… They were gone… He would never see them again…

"We should leave this place. It's not safe here, especially not for me," Mel stated. "Lydia is sure to come after me as well and I don't think we can create a barrier powerful enough to keep her out."

"Do you honestly expect me to just hide myself away, in Aveyond of all places? Need I remind you that my disguise as Lars no longer works."

"Maybe it's time that we stop hiding and tell the truth. After all, it's just Stella. She might not like you, but she is definitely more understanding and forgiving than Edward."

Gyendal let out a sigh but gave in. "Fine, I'll go, but only for the sake of keeping you and the children safe."

Satisfied by this, she took hold of her daughters hands and led them back up the stairs to start packing, leaving Gyendal with his grieving nephew.

Cer'iq was trying his hardest not to cry in front of his uncle and mentor, but a few stray tears managed to break through. He wasn't sure what hurt him more; the fact that he might never see his parents again, or the fact that he had refused to hug his father before he left.

Reaching out, Gyendal placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Look, everything is going to be alright. If your parents are still out there, I will find them. In the meantime, we need to leave this place. They would want you to be safe."

Cer'iq nodded his head but said nothing.

He let his uncle lead him out of the house and down the path to his own house. Stepping into the house he had lived for many years with his parents, he couldn't help but feel like he was all alone in the world. In a way, he was. After all, he was the only half vampire in existence and the two people who understood him better than any and loved him unconditionally were gone.

"Go and pack whatever you want to bring with you to Aveyond. We may be there for a while."

Leaving his uncle's side, he headed up the stairs to his bedroom, gathering some of his favorite toys and books, along with a few sets of clothes.

He took a moment to say goodbye to the house as he left his room, trying to memorize every cobwebbed corner of the place. As he did so, he couldn't help but be drawn to the bedroom belonging to his parents. Reluctantly, he pulled open the door and stepped inside, taking in the familiar scents of his mother and father that still lingered in the air.

"Please come back to me…" he whimpered.

Searching through the room, he decided to take a token to remember them by. That way, he would still have a piece of them with him. However, choosing such a token was not as easy as he thought. He felt a bit silly about taking something like a blanket or a pillow. While it did smell like them, he knew the smell would fade quickly.

Eventually, he settled upon two items, one to remember his mother and one to remember his father.

Lying in the bottom of the nightstand drawer, was an empty pendant. Despite never having seen it before, he recognized it right away as his mother's soul stealing pendant. As twisted as it sounded, he felt a sense of gratitude towards the pendant. Even if his mother had used it to trick his father, it still played a role in getting his parents together, which meant that it also played a role in his very existence.

And then, hidden away in the back of the closet, he found one of his father's many swords; the Osmium Sword. It wasn't as impressive as his father's favorite; the legendary Thor Sword, nor was it nearly as powerful, but it still belonged to his father.

Grabbing a belt, he managed to wrap it around him, fastening the sword, which was much too big for him, to his back. Once he was sure that it wasn't going to fall off or poke him in the leg, he slipped the pendant around his neck, tucking it underneath his tunic for safe keeping.

With a piece of both of his parents on him, he finally felt ready to leave.

Gyendal gave him an odd look as he came back down the stairs, but didn't say a word as he led him back outside.

There he found his aunt and cousins waiting, each toting a bag similar to his own.

"Is everyone ready?" Mel asked.

"As ready as I'm going to be…" Gyendal mumbled.

Cer'iq just nodded his head.

With everyone assembled and ready to go, Gyendal conjured up a portal for them. Mel went through first with Uma and Nox, and no sooner had they gone then Gyendal motioned for Cer'iq to follow after.

Taking a deep breath, Cer'iq tried to gather as much courage as he could as he took one last look at the snowy village. He had many good memories in this village, and he would miss it dearly. Yet, at the same time, it no longer felt like home anymore… not without his parents.

Closing his eyes tightly, he stepped forward into the portal, feeling the ground beneath his feet momentarily give way. Gone was the sound of wind blowing in his ears as was the snow falling on his head. In its place was the sound of birds chirping and the feeling of sunlight beaming down on him.

"Welcome to Aveyond, Young Dhampir," greeted a kind yet frail voice.


End file.
